A few days after the activation of the Union Civil Protection Mechanism by Spain and France (see EUROPE 13916/27), where devastating fires have already led to the evacuation of more than 300,000 people, the European Union is continuing to deploy a massive emergency response.
As of 27 July, France has already received seven aircraft and four helicopters from the rescEU reserve. The mission includes, in particular, Slovak and Czech Black Hawk helicopters, a Croatian Canadair, as well as Swedish and Portuguese light aircraft, supported by a European Commission liaison officer deployed in Bordeaux.
In Spain, the assistance currently includes six water-bombing aircraft from Greece, Italy and Türkiye, reinforced by three Portuguese forest firefighter teams bringing together 134 personnel and 41 specialised vehicles.
Several fires still out of control. On the ground, the situation remains extremely critical. According to a Commission spokesperson, on the morning of 27 July, the areas affected and not yet brought under control exceeded 80,000 hectares in Spain and 42,000 hectares in France. The complexity of ground operations is significantly increased by the proximity of the blazes to residential and industrial areas, forcing emergency services to prioritise the direct protection of people and homes.
Faced with this disaster, experts are highlighting a clear mismatch between the spread of the fire and the human capacities available on the ground. During a recent fire in southern Spain, the flames were advancing at a speed of 6 km/h, or 20 times faster than the average pace at which firefighters can act - estimated at a maximum of 300 metres per hour.
Commission acquires a permanent fleet. This crisis confirms a severe lengthening of the forest fire season. Having started exceptionally at the end of April, the 2026 season is “very likely going to last until October, if not early November in some cases”, according to a European spokesperson.
This is a phenomenon that is now set to recur regularly in the years ahead, particularly because of heatwaves, which cause vegetation to dry out to an extreme degree - creating a real fuel reservoir (see EUROPE 13841/3).
In the long term, the EU intends to make its own response resources permanent. At present, it relies on a ‘transition fleet’ of 22 aircraft and 5 helicopters leased or co-financed from Member States, under the action plan for summer 2026 (see EUROPE 13879/2). But in order to no longer depend on seasonal renewals and to guarantee a predictable intervention capacity, the Commission has itself ordered a permanent Union fleet of 12 Canadairs and five helicopters, which should be delivered gradually between 2027 and 2030, according to an official.
However, experts, like the Commission, are aware of the limits of aerial assets alone. “The response is not the answer”, a spokesperson insisted, stressing that “we can buy 24 or 50 Canadairs, but no amount will ever be enough when we have simultaneous emergencies”.
In its proposal for the next Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF 2028-2034), the Commission therefore plans to allocate 35% of the European budget to climate resilience and prevention in the face of extreme weather events. This component will also simplify access to emergency funding for affected regions and local authorities in order to facilitate reconstruction work on the ground. (Original version in French by Justine Manaud)