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Engineering Proceedings
Volume 133
Issue 1
10.3390/engproc2026133065
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Proceeding Paper

Aerial Firefighting Fleet for Wildfire Suppression: A System of Systems Approach †

by
Auraluck Pichitkul
1,*,
Kaung Sett Toe
1,
Kyaw Zaw Hlyan
1,
Soe Yu Waddy
1,
Aung Hein Kyaw
1,
Nikolaos Kalliatakis
2,
Nabih Naeem
2 and
Prajwal Shiva Prakasha
2
1
School of Mechanical Engineering, Suranaree University of Technology, Muang Nakhon Ratchasima, Nakhon Ratchasima 30000, Thailand
2
Institute of System Architectures in Aeronautics, German Aerospace Center (DLR), 21129 Hamburg, Germany
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
†
Presented at the 15th EASN International Conference, Madrid, Spain, 14–17 October 2025.
Eng. Proc. 2026, 133(1), 65; https://doi.org/10.3390/engproc2026133065
Published: 5 May 2026
(This article belongs to the Proceedings of The 15th EASN International Conference on “Innovation in Aviation & Space Towards Sustainability Today & Tomorrow”)
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Abstract

This study documents the design, development, and evaluation of a purpose-built aerial firefighting fleet optimized for diverse wildfire suppression environments as part of the COLOSSUS project’s X-Challenge. The multidisciplinary effort encompassed aerodynamic design, propulsion system, systems integration, cost estimation, simulation, design of experiments, and fleet optimization. Key technical advancements include a conceptual hybrid electric Vertical Takeoff and Landing (eVTOL) aircraft design, and the integration of a series hybrid propulsion model into the System of Systems Inverse Design (SoSID) simulation toolkit, in which evaluation takes place at fleet level. Simulation results indicate that the proposed aircraft achieves competitive or superior effectiveness across all test scenarios, with the series hybrid configuration offering notable endurance and tactical adaptability.
Keywords: firefighting aircraft; aircraft design; series hybrid propulsion; system of systems; wildfire simulation; wildfire suppression tactics; design of experiments; measure of effectiveness; eVTOL; aircraft cost analysis firefighting aircraft; aircraft design; series hybrid propulsion; system of systems; wildfire simulation; wildfire suppression tactics; design of experiments; measure of effectiveness; eVTOL; aircraft cost analysis

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MDPI and ACS Style

Pichitkul, A.; Toe, K.S.; Hlyan, K.Z.; Waddy, S.Y.; Kyaw, A.H.; Kalliatakis, N.; Naeem, N.; Prakasha, P.S. Aerial Firefighting Fleet for Wildfire Suppression: A System of Systems Approach. Eng. Proc. 2026, 133, 65. https://doi.org/10.3390/engproc2026133065

AMA Style

Pichitkul A, Toe KS, Hlyan KZ, Waddy SY, Kyaw AH, Kalliatakis N, Naeem N, Prakasha PS. Aerial Firefighting Fleet for Wildfire Suppression: A System of Systems Approach. Engineering Proceedings. 2026; 133(1):65. https://doi.org/10.3390/engproc2026133065

Chicago/Turabian Style

Pichitkul, Auraluck, Kaung Sett Toe, Kyaw Zaw Hlyan, Soe Yu Waddy, Aung Hein Kyaw, Nikolaos Kalliatakis, Nabih Naeem, and Prajwal Shiva Prakasha. 2026. "Aerial Firefighting Fleet for Wildfire Suppression: A System of Systems Approach" Engineering Proceedings 133, no. 1: 65. https://doi.org/10.3390/engproc2026133065

APA Style

Pichitkul, A., Toe, K. S., Hlyan, K. Z., Waddy, S. Y., Kyaw, A. H., Kalliatakis, N., Naeem, N., & Prakasha, P. S. (2026). Aerial Firefighting Fleet for Wildfire Suppression: A System of Systems Approach. Engineering Proceedings, 133(1), 65. https://doi.org/10.3390/engproc2026133065

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