The EU is sending 13 planes, four helicopters, and 134 firefighters for the fires in France and Spain.
Always see our news on Google
France receives aircraft from seven countries, while Spain receives six planes and a Portuguese ground team with 41 vehicles, after the fires forced over 300,000 people to leave their homes or accommodation. The European coordination center remains in contact with the authorities to mobilize additional support.
The European Union has mobilized 13 planes, four helicopters, 134 firefighters, and 41 vehicles to support France and Spain in combating the fires that have led to the evacuation of over 300,000 people. The assistance is coordinated through the EU Civil Protection Mechanism and includes aircraft from the rescEU reserve, teams provided by participating states, and emergency maps created through the Copernicus satellite service.
In short
1. France receives seven planes and four helicopters offered by the Czech Republic, Croatia, Germany, Portugal, Slovakia, Sweden, and Turkey. Most of the aircraft are part of the European rescEU fleet.
2. Spain receives six planes from Greece, Italy, and Turkey, as well as 134 members of intervention teams and 41 vehicles sent by Portugal.
3. The fires have forced over 300,000 people from France and Spain to leave their homes, localities, or accommodation, in one of the largest European evacuation operations in recent years.
4. Copernicus provides rapid maps of the affected areas, and a liaison officer from the Commission is in Bordeaux to help the French authorities coordinate European support.
5. Some of the European firefighters were already in France and Spain before the fires broke out, as part of the pre-positioning program for the 2026 season, which allowed them to intervene immediately alongside national teams.
France has received seven planes and four helicopters to support aerial interventions. The aircraft have been mobilized from the Czech Republic, Croatia, Germany, Portugal, Slovakia, Sweden, and Turkey, and most are part of rescEU, the European strategic reserve used when national capacities and regular assistance offers are insufficient.
The planes and helicopters can transport water or retardant substances and can intervene in areas where ground teams cannot safely reach. They are used to limit the fire front, protect localities and infrastructure, and create conditions in which ground firefighters can operate.
The European mobilization complements French resources and does not replace the national command of operations. The French authorities determine the areas to which the aircraft are sent, the priorities of the intervention, and coordination with firefighters, police, military, and local evacuation services.
In Spain, the EU has mobilized six planes offered by Greece, Italy, and Turkey. Portugal has also sent a ground team consisting of 134 people and 41 vehicles, which can support firefighting, protect localities, and logistical operations.
The figure of 134 refers to the personnel mobilized by Portugal and not to the total number of firefighters operating in Spain. Spanish national forces, regional services, military units, and other intervention teams participate separately in operations.
France and Spain have requested support through the European Union's Civil Protection Mechanism. Such a request is sent to the 37 participating states, which can provide aircraft, helicopters, teams, vehicles, equipment, or experts depending on the available resources.
The European Commission does not own or directly operate all the teams sent. Its role is to centralize requests, coordinate offers, support the transport and deployment of resources, and co-finance the costs of the intervention.
When the offers from states are insufficient, the rescEU reserve can be activated. For the 2026 fire season, this includes a European fleet of 22 planes and five helicopters distributed among the participating countries and available for cross-border interventions.
The current mobilization uses part of this capacity. The number of 13 planes and four helicopters represents the aircraft sent to France and Spain in the announced phase and not the entire European fleet available for the season.
Over 300,000 people have been evacuated in the two countries. The figure includes residents and people temporarily in tourist areas who were ordered to leave due to the proximity of the fires, smoke, the risk of changing wind direction, or the difficulty of maintaining safe evacuation routes.
Evacuation does not mean that all the homes of those individuals have been destroyed. Authorities can order preventive departure from an area before the fire reaches buildings, to avoid blocking roads and to allow emergency services to intervene.
The fires in southwestern France have particularly affected areas near the city of Bordeaux, where the fire has spread through forests and dry vegetation after several periods of high temperatures. Authorities have organized successive evacuations as the direction and intensity of the fires have changed.
In Spain, significant fires have affected areas near Madrid and neighboring provinces, as well as other regions of the country. The simultaneous mobilization of resources for multiple hotspots puts pressure on aircraft, ground teams, reception centers, and transport capacity.
The European Copernicus service provides rapid maps to support operations. Satellite images can help delineate affected areas, identify areas where the fire is spreading, and assess proximity to localities, roads, power networks, or other infrastructure elements.
The maps do not replace information received from firefighters and aircraft on the ground. Clouds, smoke, and the interval between satellite passes can limit visibility, and the data must be combined with operational observations on the ground.
The EU Emergency Response Coordination Center monitors operations and maintains contact with the French and Spanish authorities. The center can identify additional resources if the situation worsens, if new fires break out, or if some aircraft need to be withdrawn for maintenance or other emergencies.
A liaison officer from the European Commission has been sent to Bordeaux. He helps the authorities coordinate the arrival and use of resources offered by several countries, transmit operational needs to the European center, and avoid overlap or delays in support.
Some of the European teams were already in France and Spain before the fires. The pre-positioning program sends firefighters from other countries to high-risk regions before an emergency situation arises, so they can be immediately integrated into local operations.
Pre-positioning is different from mobilization made after the activation of the mechanism. Teams are transferred preventively for a set period, while aircraft and additional personnel are sent later depending on the scale of the fires and the requests of the affected authorities.
The European Commissioner for Crisis Management and Equality, Hadja Lahbib, stated: "At this moment, hundreds of thousands of people have been forced to leave their homes, while firefighters are battling walls of flames, in dramatic conditions, to save lives and communities. No country should face a disaster of this magnitude alone."
Lahbib added: "This is why Europe has built a common response capacity: aircraft in the air, firefighters on the ground, and additional support ready to intervene at the moment it is needed. For the people of France and Spain: Europe will stand by you until the fires are extinguished."
European support does not determine when the fires will be controlled. The efficiency of operations depends on temperature, humidity, wind speed and direction, access of teams to hotspots, availability of water, and the emergence of secondary fires.
The EU Civil Protection Mechanism includes all 27 member states and ten other participating countries. It can be activated for fires, floods, earthquakes, medical emergencies, and other disasters that exceed a country's response capacity.
For the 2026 season, the EU has prepared 22 planes, five helicopters, and ground teams pre-positioned in high-risk states. Resources are limited and must be distributed among requests that may arise simultaneously in multiple regions.
The next decisions will depend on the evolution of the fires and the requests sent by France and Spain. The European coordination center can mobilize other available capacities, but has not announced at this stage an additional number of aircraft or teams.
Latest News
23:14
22:41
22:01
21:26
21:05
See more news
NEWS ON THE SAME TOPICS
