Airtanker firefighting is the most spectacular tool used to fight wildland fires. However, it employs a rudimentary large-scale spraying technology operating at a high speed and a long distance from the target. This review gives an overview of the fluid dynamics processes that govern this practice, which are characterized by rich and varied physical phenomena. The liquid column penetration in the air, its large-scale fragmentation, and an intense surface atomization give shape to the rainfall produced by the airtanker and the deposition of the final product on the ground. The cloud dynamics is controlled by droplet breakup, evaporation, and wind dispersion. The process of liquid deposition onto the forest canopy is full of open questions of great interest for rainfall retention in vegetation. Of major importance, but still requiring investigation, is the role of the complex non-Newtonian viscoelastic and shear-thinning behavior of the retardant dropped to stop the fire propagation. The review describes the need for future research devoted to the subject.

中文翻译：

---

空中加油机消防流体动力学

空中加油机消防是扑灭野火的最壮观的工具。然而，它采用了一种基本的大规模喷涂技术，可高速、距离目标很远。这篇综述概述了控制这种实践的流体动力学过程，其特点是丰富多样的物理现象。液柱在空气中的渗透、大规模的破碎以及强烈的表面雾化形成了气罐车产生的降雨以及最终产品在地面上的沉积。云动力学由液滴破碎、蒸发和风扩散控制。液体沉积到森林冠层上的过程充满了对植被降雨保留具有重大意义的悬而未决的问题。最重要但仍需要研究的是，为阻止火势蔓延而滴下的阻燃剂的复杂非牛顿粘弹性和剪切稀化行为的作用。该评论描述了未来致力于该主题的研究的必要性。