1.   Cutter Aviation in Phoenix rents space at Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport to the Forest Service for slurry bombers, which are hired out of California and Chandler.

2.   Five pilots died last year when slurry bombers crashed in California and Montana.

3.   Ray shook his head as slurry bombers dived at the fire, spewing pink loads of retardant.

4.   Electrical generation was needed particularly at the airport, Koch said, where ground crews were unable to pump fire retardant liquid into the slurry bombers.

5.   He cheered as slurry bombers fighting the fire roared just a few hundred feet over his head.

6.   Trees could be seen exploding into flame on the western horizon, and three or four slurry bombers dipped low behind trees, making several passes.