France to deploy military A400M aircraft for wildfire operations

France will deploy a military A400M transport aircraft equipped with an aerial retardant delivery system by the end of July to strengthen wildfire response efforts, the Interior Ministry and the Ministry of the Armed Forces said Thursday.

The aircraft will operate "in complement" to existing firefighting assets, intervening "upstream of fires to secure the most vulnerable areas," according to a joint statement by the ministries.

The military aircraft will be deployed "by the end of July" to support existing firefighting resources, Government spokesperson Maud Bregeon told broadcaster BFM TV.

Separately, Transport Minister Philippe Tabarot said the aircraft was being equipped and its crews trained so it could become operational "as quickly as possible."

The ministries said they signed an agreement with Airbus on July 17 to equip an A400M, on an experimental basis, with a retardant delivery kit to reinforce France's national wildfire response capacity.

The aircraft will be capable of dropping 20 tons of fire retardant, equivalent to the payload of two Dash firefighting aircraft.

Technical preparations, flight tests, and qualification of military crews began on July 20.

The A400M will reinforce Operation Sentinel for wildfire response under the interministerial Hephaistos protocol, which is activated each summer to support civil protection authorities.

France's existing aerial firefighting fleet includes 12 Canadair aircraft, eight Dash aircraft, 12 water-bombing helicopters, six Air Tractor aircraft, and 27 departmental helicopters, according to the joint statement.

The ministries added that France can also activate the EU's rescEU civil protection mechanism to request additional aerial firefighting resources if necessary.

The announcement comes as France continues to battle several major wildfires.

More than 10,000 people were evacuated overnight in the tourist area of Cap-Ferret in southwestern Gironde, where a wildfire had burned more than 2,000 hectares without causing casualties.

The prefecture said around 500 firefighters remained deployed, describing the blaze as "very violent" and warning that conditions remained unfavorable.