Montana Republican Tim Sheehy’s aviation company built its business fighting wildfires for the federal government.
A generation ago, a spate of fatal crashes of planes and helicopters the Forest Service hired to fight wildfires spurred the agency to start having its own inspectors to make sure the aircraft could safely fly.
Now a senator tied to that industry says the inspections aren’t necessary and that the Forest Service should halt them.
Republican Tim Sheehy, the founder of a Montana-based company that’s made millions of dollars in Forest Service firefighting contracts, said the agency’s inspections are outdated and duplicate the Federal Aviation Administration’s oversight responsibilities. Indeed, he once requested a review of a fatal 2021 air crash in which the Forest Service failed to detect a crack in an aircraft’s wing.
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