The Flying Fireman was formed in Victoria (by Alex Davidson and Bill Harrison) to operate two PBY-5s water bombers out of Prince George (CF-NTL and N609FF) in 1965 and 1966. By 1973, BC was fully committed to land-based retardant air tankers but continued to use PBYs on a casual basis, and Flying Fireman found work elsewhere in Canada and the US. This PBY-5 served with the US Navy as BuNo 46522 and became N5585V. Imported to Canada in 1972 and operated as tanker #7 and #777. January 1990 to Erickson Group Ltd in Oregon as N2172N. To Erickson Aircraft Collection in 2012 and Avenger LLC in 2016.

Flying Fireman Canso number 4 having just flown off a lake after picking up another load of water, some of which can be see streaming past the aircraft. This Canso started out with the US Navy as BuNo 46596 before joining Flying Fireman in 1967. After its days with them ended in 1992 it went to the Museo del Aire in Madrid, Spain.

This Neptune was formerly RCAF 24113 and was purchased by The Flying Fireman of Victoria and converted to air tanker with a 3,000 gallon retardant tank. In 1972 it was used on a trial basis by the British Columbia Forest service during fire season and the Neptune did well in that role. Transport Canada did not approve the modifications so the Neptune was sold and went to the United States and worked there as an air tanker until it crashed in 1975. Its remains and parts of another Neptune were used in a rebuild and it is now on display at the Pima Air and Space Museum in Arizona as N14448.

Photo by Ron Mak

Built by Canadian Vickers, this PBY crashed while fighting fire at Snow Lake, Manitoba in 1978 and was destroyed with two fatalities. It apparently nose dived into the ground likely from fuel starvation to one of the engines.

Four PBY Catalina/Cansos of the Flying Fireman lined up at the British Columbia Forest Service base in Smithers. Number 3 still had its former RCAF side blisters and nose turret. It went to the National Museum of Naval Aviation in Pensacola Florida. Number 4 is believed to be a PBV-1A reg at the time as CF-FTN. Number 5 is CF-IHN, a PBV-1A cn CV-441. It crashed near Thunder Bay, Ontario in 1980 and was destroyed.

Sold in the US as N483CV in 2007