The Forest Service’s Wildfire Force

The Forest Service enters the 2026 fire season with the strongest and most coordinated wildland firefighting capability in the world. We can mobilize more than 28,000 wildfire responders and over 22,000 contracted resources across 2,500 vendors. The Department also manages the majority of the federal firefighting aviation fleet including helicopters and air tankers nationwide. USDA continues to work closely with federal partners, state and tribal governments and local fire departments to ensure a unified, aggressive and highly coordinated approach to wildfire management. (U.S. Forest Service video produced by Preston Keres)