STUNNING VIDEO: Pilots’ View Of California’s Rim Fire

The view from space is amazing.

But perhaps even more impressive is the view from the cockpits of California Air National Guard as crews battle the huge Rim Fire burning near Yosemite National Park.

Our colleagues at KQED’s News Fix blog have posted a series of the videos here. We’ll embed the most recent one, which was taken last Thursday. We suspect many of you will agree it’s stunning.

By the way, according to a note posted with the video, the landing gear warning can be heard on the video because the C-130J “is such a high-technology aircraft, disabling the audible warning has proven difficult. Lockheed, the ANG and USAF have determined a software solution and, with luck, will be integrating the fix before next fire season.”

As for the fire, The Associated Press writes that “crews are finally gaining … as fire officials expressed optimism even as the blaze grew larger while containment jumped to 20 percent. … Nearly 3,700 firefighters battled the roughly 252-square-mile fire, the biggest wildfire on record in California’s Sierra Nevada.”

Southern California Public Radio continues to update its online “fire tracker” here.