Planes: Fire & Rescue

Planes: Fire & Rescue (also known internationally as Planes 2: Fire & Rescue or simply as Planes 2) is a 2014 theatrical sequel to the 2013 animated film Planes, a spin-off of Pixar's Cars franchise. Directed by Bobs Gannaway, produced by DisneyToon Studios and Ferrell Barron, and executive produced by John Lasseter, it was released in theaters on July 18, 2014 by Walt Disney Pictures.

Plot
Since winning the Wings Around the Globe Rally, Dusty Crophopper has a successful career as a racer. Unfortunately, his engine's gearbox becomes damaged due to too much over-revving. To make things worse, that type of gearbox is out of production, and none can be found anywhere, so he may never race again. Frustrated with mechanic Dottie's newly installed warning light to keep his engine performance low to prevent further damage, Dusty goes on a defiant flight testing his limits. Unfortunately in doing so, he has a hard landing with engine trouble at Propwash Junction's airport, causing a fire.

The residents put out the fire with some difficulty, but the accident leads to a government inspector named Ryker closing the airport due to inadequate firefighting personnel. Aggrieved at his carelessness, Dusty offers to undergo training to be certified as a firefighter to meet the necessary regulations to reopen the airport. To that end, Dusty travels to Piston Peak National Park, where he meets a fire and rescue crew under the command of a helicopter named Blade Ranger. The leader of an efficient unit, Blade is initially unimpressed by the small newcomer, and Dusty's training proves to be a difficult challenge.

Dusty's original undercarriage is replaced by two big scooping water tanks with retractable undercarriage wheels on their undersides. During training, Dusty learns that Blade was formerly an actor who played a police helicopter on the TV series CHoPs. Later, Dusty is devastated by a call from his friends at Propwash Junction noting that all attempts at finding a replacement gearbox have failed, and his racing career is over.

Depressed, Dusty's education falters to Blade's frustration, and things come to a head when Dusty makes a forced landing in a river during a fire dispatch and is swept through the rapids with Blade trying to extract him. Eventually, the pair make it to land, and Dusty confesses his physical disability, to which Blade advises Dusty not to give up. They shelter in an abandoned mine while a fire passes. The situation is complicated in that Blade is also damaged, from protecting Dusty in the fire, and is temporarily grounded for repairs. While Blade is recuperating, Dusty learns that Blade's co-star from CHoPs was killed during a stunt gone wrong on set that Blade was helpless to stop, so he decided to become a firefighter to save lives for real.

Lightning in a thunderstorm over a forest near Piston Peak starts several spot fires which unite into a serious forest fire, and the team fight it and seem to have extinguished it. But during the grand reopening of a local lodge, visiting VIPs fly too low and make air eddies which blow embers about, creating a larger fire. The national park's superintendent Cad Spinner selfishly diverts all the water supply to his lodge's roof sprinklers to prevent the lodge from burning, and so prevents the firefighters from making fire retardant for their own duties. With only their pre-existing tank loads, the firefighters manage to help the evacuees escape the fire while Dusty is alerted that two elderly campers, named Harvey and Winnie, are trapped on a burning bridge deep in the fire zone. He races to the scene, and is forced to push his engine to the maximum to climb vertically up a waterfall to refill his water tanks to drop water to save the campers, as the only other surface water near is a river too shallow and twisty and rocky for him to scoop from. Meanwhile, Blade shows up and assists the campers. Dusty successfully drops water and extinguishes the fire, but his overstressed gearbox fails completely, and he crashes.

Unconscious, Dusty is airlifted back to base, where he wakes up five days later to learn that not only has his structure been fully repaired, but the base mechanic has built a superior custom refurbished gearbox for his engine to allow full performance again. Impressed at Dusty's skill and heroism, Blade certifies him a firefighter. Propwash Junction is reopened with Dusty assuming his duty as a firefighter, celebrated with an aerial show with his new colleagues from Piston Peak.

During the end credits, it is shown that Cad's misconduct resulted in him being demoted and reassigned as a park ranger in Death Valley.

Voice Cast

 * Dane Cook as Dusty Crophopper
 * Stacy Keach as Skipper Riley
 * Danny Mann as Sparky
 * Julie Bowen as Lil' Dipper
 * Brad Garrett as Chug
 * Teri Hatcher as Dottie
 * Curtis Armstrong as Maru
 * Ed Harris as Blade Ranger
 * Wes Studi as Windlifter
 * Dale Dye as Cabbie
 * Regina King as Dynamite
 * Corri English as Pinecone
 * Bryan Callen as Avalanche
 * Danny Pardo as Blackout
 * Matt Jones as Drip
 * Fred Willard as Secretary of the Interior
 * Jerry Stiller as Harvey
 * Cedric the Entertainer as Leadbottom
 * Anne Meara as Winnie
 * Erik Estrada as Nick Loopin' Lopez
 * John Michael Higgins as Cad Spinner
 * Barry Corbin as Ol' Jammer
 * Hal Holbrook as Mayday
 * Kevin Michael Richardson as Ryker
 * Patrick Warburton as Pulaski
 * Brad Paisley as Flap
 * Kari Wahlgren as Patch
 * René Auberjonois as André
 * Steve Schirripa as Steve
 * Brent Musburger as Brent Mustangburger
 * John Ratzenberger as Brody
 * Jamie Theakston as Pick-up Truck (UK version)
 * Emma Bunton as Lady Car (UK version)
 * Bear Grylls as Avalanche (UK version)

Additional voices

 * Caroline Aaron
 * Ferrell Barron
 * Bobs Gannaway
 * Kate Micucci
 * Masasa Moyo
 * Fred Tatasciore

Dusty Crophopper
Dusty Crophopper is a crop duster, and a famous air racing champion from Propwash Junction, Minnesota.

When world-famous air racer Dusty Crophopper returns to hometown Propwash Junction after another victorious racing season, the former crop duster revels in his new career success until a fateful training run changes his course with a career-ending injury. Forced to shift gears, Dusty decides to train with the Aerial Fire Fighters at Piston Peak Air Attack Base as a Single Engine Air Tanker (SEAT). The heroic, often life-threatening efforts involved are admirable—but seemingly impossible to master—particularly if you’re a crop duster-turned-racer with an injury that can’t be ignored.

In Planes: Fire & Rescue, Dusty, at first, races around the world again with most of the racers from the Wings Around the Globe, and was going to perform at Propwash Junction's annual Corn Festival. However, while he was doing a training run with Skipper, his engine sputtered, causing him to fall into a spin before luckily regaining control. Skipper guides him back to the town for an emergency landing, and Dottie finds out that his gearbox became damaged due to too much over-revving. To make things worse, that type is out of production, meaning that Dusty can't race anymore.

To prevent him from crashing, Dottie installs a warning light on his panel that will go off if he redlines, meaning he has to slow down. While at the Honkers bar, Chug and Sparky tell Dusty that they will try to find a new gearbox for him, though Leadbottom offered Dusty to go back to his job of crop dusting, to which Skipper, Chug and Sparky do not agree, saying that Dusty will be back to racing soon.

However, when none of them were looking, Dusty goes on a defiant flight testing his limits. However, he has a hard landing with engine trouble at Propwash Junction's airport, causing a fire at Chug and Dottie's Fill n' Fly. Mayday, the town's fire truck, tries to put it out with his hose, but later finds out that it is leaking. Dusty, Chug, Mayday and Skipper then worked together to topple the water tower and put the fire out. However, the next day, a government inspector named Ryker closes the airport until a second firefighter is hired, which means that no planes can fly to Propwash Junction to attend the Corn Festival.

Mayday later explains to Dusty about aerial firefighters, who drop water instead of dusting crops like Dusty used to. This gives Dusty the idea of becoming Propwash Junction's second firefighter, and he travels to Piston Peak National Park so to be certified by Mayday's old friend Blade Ranger.

When he got to Piston Peak, he met his favorite fan Dipper, a heavy-lift helicopter called Windlifter, and the ex-military transport heavy plane Cabbie. After meeting them, an emergency horn blares, alerting them that there is a wildfire to fight. Dusty got so interested, that he went along with the planes.

As the team arrive at the scene of the wildfire, Blade was already on the scene, which he, Dipper and Windlifter dropped fire retardant while the Smokejumpers parachute out of Cabbie and dig a fire line so that the fire won't spread. When Dusty arrives, Blade tells him to get out of the airspace, before he flies through the retardant.

After the fire was put out, Maru, the firefighters' mechanic, washes the retardant off Dusty, before Blade orders him to replace Dusty's original undercarriage with two pontoons. Blade then trains Dusty, starting with scooping water to fill his tank. However, Dusty almost collides into the trees. Next, Blade tells Dusty about the different types of fire attacks along with that all aircraft must be on the ground exactly thirty minutes after sunset, and then orders him to fly under a bridge and pull straight up in front of a waterfall, but Dusty backs off due to realizing that he has go to max speed with his current gearbox. However, Blade warns Dusty that he won't get certified if the course is not completed. Later, Blade sets up some flaming barrels on the runway. Dusty flies over them, and tries to douse them with retardant while being coached by Blade on the radio. During training, After days of training, Dusty's friends in Propwash Junction tell him that they have found a new gearbox which will arrive in a few days.

He then met the park's superintendent Cad Spinner, who wanted him to come to the Grand Fusel Lodge's grand reopening party to impress the Secretary of the Interior. Dusty later learns that Blade was formerly an actor who played a police helicopter on the TV series CHoPs (parody of CHiPs).

The next day, Dusty tries to help put another wildfire out that was caused by a thunderstorm, but Blade told him that he is too high for releasing the retardant. Blade tells Windlifter to finish the spot, then the Smokejumpers got trapped by the flames in the forest. Blade orders Dipper to help them, but Dusty goes in and releases retardant over the trees for the Smokejumpers to proceed.

That night, Dusty goes to Cad's party along with Dipper, Windlifter and Maru. Dusty saw all kinds of fun activities, and sees André, the concierge, talking to a married couple. Suddenly, Cad saw Dusty, and told him that he will soon get a promotion from the Secretary of the Interior. While there, Dusty meets a sweet old RV couple called Harvey and Winnie, who are celebrating their fiftieth wedding anniversary by going to the part of the park where they had their first kiss.

The next morning, Dusty is devastated by a call from his friends at Propwash Junction, noting that all attempts at finding a replacement gearbox have failed and that his racing career is over. Maru then alerts Dusty that there are two fires heading towards the Fusel Lodge after visiting VIPs flew too low during the grand reopening of the Grand Fusel Lodge and made air eddies which blew embers about. Soon, Dusty and the firefighters arrive at the scene, where Blade tells Dusty to drop half of his retardant on the fire so that the rest is saved for the other fire. However, Dusty gets distracted by his bad news, and releases all of the retardant. Blade orders Dusty to return to the base, but Dusty doesn't listen as he goes to reload at the lake. However, the strong currents pull him down the rapids and towards a waterfall. As Dusty gets his engine clear, Blade tells him to redline so that he can take off before the waterfall. However, Dusty pulls back as the warning light goes off, and falls over the waterfall before getting grabbed by Blade's hoist, taking all of Blade's strength to swing Dusty to the ground safely.

As the fire closes in, Dusty and Blade head for the safety of an abandoned mine. Dusty, however, refuses to go in it, saying that they will suffocate, but Blade explains that it is their only chance and that they will let the fire burn over. Dusty decides to outrun the fire, but Blade tells him that he won't be able to. Dusty then chooses to find his way out of the fire, but Blade asks why he would. Dusty replies that he didn't want to push his engine. Blade then gets angry that Dusty would not listen to his orders. Dusty then chooses to give up firefighting, to which Blade then tells him to go back to racing, and Dusty finally explains about his broken gearbox. Blade then advises him not to give up, reminding him of all the lives he could save, and the two hurried into the mine.

Meanwhile, the fire headed for the Fusel Lodge. However, while the guests raced for the exits, Cad selfishly diverts the main water line to the lodge's roof sprinklers, taking what the firefighters needed. Later, the guests get trapped as burning trees fell onto the main road. As the fire rages outside the mine, Blade shields Dusty from its heat. Eventually, the fire burns past, but Blade was too hurt to fly. Dusty calls for Windlifter to carry Blade, hoping that Maru would repair him. While Blade is recuperating, Dusty learns from Maru that Blade's co-star from CHoPs, Nick Loopin' Lopez, was killed during a stunt gone wrong on set that Blade was helpless to stop, so he decided to become a firefighter to save lives for real.

Despite the rule of not going out at night, the firefighters eventually decide to fight the fire with Windlifter in command. Maru tried to fill Dusty, Dipper and Windlifter with fire retardant, but finds that the hoses are dry due to the water switched by Cad to his lodge. They were told by Windlifter that they only have what is left in their tanks, and that they would have to make it count.

Soon, the firefighters arrive at the blocked exit. Windlifter and Dipper make perfect drops as Dusty lines up and releases his fire retardant, completely putting the flames out, while the Smokejumpers parachute out of Cabbie and remove the debris off the road. Then the firefighters get alerted by their informant Patch that Harvey and Winnie are trapped on a burning bridge deep in the fire zone. Dusty races to the scene, and tries to refill his water tanks from the river, but it was too shallow and twisty and rocky for him to scoop from. He is forced to push his engine to the maximum to climb vertically up the falls to scoop some of its water. Meanwhile, Blade, who got repaired, shows up and holds the collapsing bridge. Dusty successfully drops water and extinguishes the fire so the RVs rush to safety, but his overstressed gearbox fails completely, and he crashes into the forest.

Unconscious, Dusty is airlifted back to base, where he wakes up five days later to learn that not only has his structure been fully repaired, but Maru has built a superior custom refurbished gearbox for his engine to allow full performance again. He also discovered that the new superintendent was Ol' Jammer, to which he asked what happen to Cad. It was discovered that Cad got fired by the Secretary of the Interior for not caring about the park, but just about the lodge. Impressed at Dusty's skill and heroism, Blade certifies him a firefighter. Propwash Junction is reopened with Dusty assuming his duty as a firefighter, celebrated with an aerial show starring his new colleagues from Piston Peak.
 * Dusty's racing number is #7, which some say is a lucky number.
 * Dusty's wingspan is 23 feet (7 meters).
 * Dusty is inspired by the Air Tractor AT-502, Cessna and the PZL-Mielec M-18 Dromader. He has a horsepower of 680 1/2.
 * His flying style is keeping it nice and low, but keeping his speed up.

Blade Ranger
Blade Ranger is a helicopter and the deuteragoinst of Planes: Fire & Rescue.

Blade Ranger, a veteran fire-and-rescue helicopter, heads up the Piston Peak Air Attack team. Haunted by a storied past, he’s a tough and demanding air boss with a wry sense of humor, and he’s not exactly enthusiastic about his new trainee Dusty. But Blade is a pro and does everything he can to bring the new SEAT up to speed.

In Planes: Fire & Rescue, Blazin' Blade Ranger was once an actor for the television show CHoPs (parody of CHiPs) alongside Nick Loopin' Lopez, until Nick was unexpectedly killed in a freak accident during the filming of the show's 139th episode, and Blade was unable to save him in time. Traumatized by this loss, Blade ended up quitting the show business, resulting in CHoPs being cancelled, and started working at Piston Peak as a fire chief so that he can try to save other people for real. Blade, at first, doesn't like Dusty Crophopper, since he is not meant to be a firefighter, but is sent there because his damaged gearbox has prevented him from racing. However, during the scooping of water for retardant, Dusty ignores Blade's warning about flying too low, resulting in them both being swept down a river, off a waterfall, and being trapped inside a mine to escape the worsening fire. Blade's engine is severely damaged by the heat, and he is sent back to his hanger to recover while Windlifter is temporarily made the new chief. However, when the fire traps the tourists at the main exit along with Harvey and Winnie at Augerin Canyon's burning bridge, Dusty and the other firefighters have their water supply cut off, and simply have to use the remaining water for retardant, which is not enough to put out the fire. Fortunately, Blade recovers just in time to save the two RVs by holding them when the bridge was starting to collapse, while Dusty reluctantly goes up the waterfall at max speed to scoop up water and put the flames on the bridge out, letting Harvey and Winnie drive to safety, but also making his gearbox fail completely, causing him to crash. After Dusty is fixed, Blade certifies him as a firefighter, and heads to Propwash Junction along with the other firefighters to celebrate Dusty's bravery.
 * As a tip of the hat to the friends at Cal Fire’s Hemet-Ryan Air Attack Base, where the filmmakers did much of their research, Blade’s tail number 301 is the same number as Hemet-Ryan’s helicopter.
 * He is inspired by the AgustaWestland AW109, AW139 and Bell 429 GlobalRanger.
 * His eyes were originally brown, but animators changed to them to icy blue when his actor Ed Harris joined the cast.  However, his LEGO Duplo shows him with brown eyes.
 * Blade's plan of him and Dusty sheltering in the abandoned mine is a reference to when Ed Pulaski, who the character Pulaski is named after, saved most of his crew during the Great Fire of 1910 by sheltering in an abandoned mine.

Lil' Dipper
Lea "Lil' Dipper" Levine is the tritagonist in Planes: Fire & Rescue. She is a member of an organization working to fight wildfires in Piston Peak National Park. She is also Dusty's biggest fan.

Outgoing and spirited super scooper Dipper is skilled at skimming lakes, scooping up more than 1600 gallons of water and dousing angry fires. A former cargo hauler from Alaska, Dipper is an avid air racing fan with a major crush on headline racer Dusty, so she’s head-over-wheels with excitement when the new SEAT shows up at Piston Peak.

In Planes: Fire & Rescue, Lil' Dipper greets Dusty with excitement when he arrives at Piston Peak National Park, as she claims to be his biggest fan and develops a crush on him. She gets shocked at the point when Dusty flies through some fire retardant while the firefighters were fighting a wildfire. When Blade hears that Dusty is the SEAT member that Mayday radioed him about, Dipper explains to him that Dusty is not just any SEAT, but also raced around the world.

During one night, when Dusty was sleeping, Dipper watches him through the garage door's window. When Dusty wakes up and notices her, she moves down out of his sight. While Blade argues with the park's superintendent Cad Spinner the next day, Dipper whispers to Dusty that Cad got the park service to save 80 percent of their budget to his lodge restoration project.

Later that night, all of the firefighters plan to watch an episode of CHoPs (parody of CHiPs), which Dipper was excited to have her first "date" with Dusty, and saved him a spot. After Dusty stops in his spot, Dipper puts a part of her wing on Dusty's side, saying that "they're real." When Dusty asks if Blade was a TV star, Dipper mentions the show to have "139 episodes of law-breakin' love!"

The next day, the firefighters get a report of that lightning in a thunderstorm over a forest near Piston Peak had started several spot fires which united into a serious forest fire. Dipper tells Blade to just give Dusty a shot at helping out, but Blade refuses to let a person not certified take part until Windlifter explains that every plane they have is needed along with Dusty saying that he wants to help, and the team eventually fight it. Back at the base, Dipper tells Dusty that he did a great job saving the Smokejumpers when they got surrounded by the flames, although Blade was unhappy with Dusty, saying that it could have been him spread all over the woods instead of retardant. Dipper explains to Dusty that it is just Blade's way of saying that he did a good job.

After they notice a VIP flying so low, Dusty decides that they should go to Cad's party, which Dipper was interested to have a second date with Dusty, but Dusty says to also have Windlifter and Maru come along. Upon arriving at the Grand Fusel Lodge, Dipper says that it is the perfect place for their date. She becomes interested by an ice sculpture, saying that "this could be our room if we were little tiny pieces of ice." She also comments that Harvey and Winnie's plan to visit the place where they had their first kiss is sweet, and invites them to join her, Dusty, Windlifter and Maru for a drink outside. She even agrees with Harvey that Dusty's firefighting should be his second career, like with the rest of the firefighters, as she tells them that she used to haul cargo up in Anchorage.

The next morning, the firefighters are alerted that there are two fires which were caused by visiting VIPs flying too low during the Fusel Lodge's grand reopening and making air eddies which blew embers about. Dipper and the rest of the firefighters arrive at the scene, to which Blade orders her and Windlifter to split up from him and Dusty to fight the Coil Springs fire.

Dipper was shocked at the fact of Blade getting damaged when he was shielding Dusty from the fire in an abandoned mine. Upon hearing Patch report that the fire has blocked the park's main exit for the tourists, Dipper reminds Windlifter, put in command, about the rule of not going out after sunset, but the firefighters eventually agree to take part, despite only having their pre-existing tank loads due to Cad selfishly diverting the water supply to his lodge's roof sprinklers.

Soon, the firefighters arrive at the blocked exit. Windlifter and Dipper make perfect drops as Dusty lines up and releases his fire retardant, completely putting the flames out, while the Smokejumpers parachute out of Cabbie and remove the debris off the road. Then the firefighters get alerted by Patch that Harvey and Winnie are trapped on a burning bridge deep in the fire zone, to which Dusty races to the scene.

Dipper later watches as Maru fixes Dusty after he crashes due to his gearbox giving out after saving Harvey and Winnie when he had to go to his maximum speed to scoop water from the waterfall and spray it on the bridge. Eventually, Dusty wakes up five days later, and is told by Maru that a new gearbox had been rebuilt for him. Blade informs Dusty that Dipper had stayed by his side the whole time, to which she even states that she likes watching Dusty sleep. She and the other firefighters all later head to Propwash Junction to celebrate Dusty's bravery after he gets certified by Blade.
 * She is modeled after a Grumman G-21 Goose and CL-415 SuperScooper.
 * Her real name, "Lea Levine", was revealed in Meet the Planes.

Windlifter
Windlifter is a heavy-lift helicopter.

Windlifter is a heavy-lift helicopter who can hoist dozens of trees or a huge tank of fire retardant. The American Indian’s wisdom is vast—he’s chock full of fire folklore, and his connection to nature allows him to sense fires before they’re even spotted. The former lumberjack became a firefighter to help others, and no mission is too big for Windlifter.

In Planes: Fire & Rescue, Windlifter is first seen flexing on piles of logs when Dusty Crophopper arrives in Piston Peak National Park. Later, he and the Smokejumpers watch Dusty and Lil' Dipper's discussion. After Dynamite tells Dusty that Blade is busy checking on spot fires, Windlifter tells the story of a person called Haokah by the Lakota who beats his drums, with the cause of a fire being lightning and thunder from the drumbeats. With Dusty confused, Dipper tells Windlifter to stop scaring Dusty.

While the firefighters prepare to fight a wildfire in the forest, Maru gives Windlifter his tank of fire retardant before he takes off. After Dipper pours retardant over one part of the fire, Blade Ranger tells Windlifter that he is clear to maneuver, to which he then pours his retardant onto another part of the fire.

Upon the arrival of Cad Spinner, the park's superintendent, Windlifter explains to Dusty that Cad waves himself daily, and watches as Blade and Cad argue about putting a lot of happy campers into the Grand Fusel Lodge and protecting the humanity. After Cad leaves the base referring to Blade as "Blazin' Blade", Windlifter informs Dusty, when he gets shushed by Dipper on mentioning Blade's nickname, to meet at the main hangar that night and not tell anyone, especially Blade, what they are doing. On that night, Windlifter, Cabbie, Dipper, Dusty and the Smokejumpers watch an episode of CHoPS (parody of CHiPs), which shows that Blade used to be a TV star who fought crimes with Nick Loopin' Lopez. Windlifter seems to dislike the show, as saying that he is with Cabbie stating that "this show stinks."

When Blade refused to let Dusty fight a few spot fires caused by a thunderstorm while not certified, Windlifter explained that every plane they have will be needed, to which Blade eventually agreed. When Dusty pours his fire retardant too high above one of the fires, Blade orders Windlifter to finish off the ridge.

After extinguishing the fires, Windlifter and the rest of the team, excluding the Smokejumpers, head back to the base. On that night, Windlifter, Dusty, Dipper and Maru go to the Grand Fusel Lodge's grand reopening party. When Maru explained that he had to get normal coffee, which wasn't available at the lodge, Windlifter tries on a pair of sunglasses, and asks Maru what he thinks, to which Maru answers that "you look good."

Windlifter later joins Maru, Dusty and Dipper outside with Harvey and Winnie, an RV couple planning to visit the place of the park where they had their first kiss. When Dipper explains about the firefighting job being a second career to the team, she mentions that Windlifter used to be a lumberjack. Noticing that Windlifter hadn't spoke much, Harvey asks him if he wants a toast, to which Dipper explains that he is not much for speeches. Windlifter then tells the story of a coyote who traveled to a mountain and climbed it to find a tame fire and bring it down to the first vehicles (car equivalent of animals), but was unable to prevent his tires (feet) from getting burnt. Upon seeing them blackened, he ate them when he thought that they were his favorite snack, but also knowing that they were still full of life, and lets go of the old and renews himself like fire renewing the Earth. After hearing it, Dusty says that he was up to the bit where the coyote ate his tires, while Maru congratulates Windlifter on giving the best toast ever.

The next day, the firefighters get the news of two wildfires caused by Cad's visiting VIPs flying too low over the burnt area the previous night and making air eddies which blew embers about. As Windlifter, Blade, Dusty and Dipper fly toward the fires, Blade splits the group into two, with Windlifter joining Dipper to fight the Coil Springs fire while Blade and Dusty take the Whitewall Rapids fire.

Later, Patch, the firefighters' informant, gets Windlifter to lift Blade back to the base after he got damaged from protecting Dusty in the fire while sheltering in an abandoned mine. While Blade was being fixed, Windlifter was put into command. When they hear the news of the fire blocking the main exit to the escaping tourists, they eventually agree to go out and save the tourists. However, when the water supply that makes retardant runs out due to Cad selfishly diverting it to his lodge's roof sprinklers, Windlifter tells the team to make it count with what is left in their tanks.

Eventually, the team makes it through the fire towards the main exit, where Windlifter and Dipper put out the fire on the trees blocking the road, while Dusty puts out the fire on the trees over the railroad tracks, and the Smokejumpers parachute out of Cabbie to remove the debris off the road. Windlifter then receives a call from Patch that Harvey and Winnie are trapped on a burning bridge in Augerin Canyon. He was reluctant at first to let Dusty save them due to having no retardant, but finally agreed when Dusty explained about filling up from the river leading to the canyon.

The next day, Blade (who got fixed in time to help Harvey and Winnie) and Windlifter fly back to the base while carrying Dusty, who crashed in the forest after his busted gearbox gives out due to redlining up the waterfall to scoop water when the river was too shallow, twisty and rocky. He watches with the rest of the team as Maru tries to fix Dusty, who regains consciousness five days later. Windlifter then asks Maru if he told Dusty which parts he fixed, to which Maru explained that he fixed Dusty's damage along with giving him a new gearbox. Windlifter and the rest of the team travel to Propwash Junction to celebrate Dusty's bravery, along with him being certified by Blade to re-open the town's airport for the Corn Festival, and takes part in an aerial show with the team.
 * Windlifter's design was inspired by the Sikorsky S-64 Skycrane, a Kamov KA-26 and a Mil MI-10.
 * To ensure authenticity for Windlifter, and pay proper respect to the American Indian community, filmmakers turned to Dr. Paul Apodaca, Ph.D. and associate professor American studies at Chapman University in Southern California.

Cabbie
Cabbie McHale is an ex-military transport.

A jolly old ex-military transport plane, Cabbie used to drop airborne utility vehicles behind enemy lines in Korea. Now he drops smokejumpers at Piston Peak—it’s a lot like combat, but nobody’s shootin’ at him. With a payload of 10,000 pounds and a maximum takeoff weight of 74,000 pounds—Cabbie can carry the smokejumpers up to 2,000 miles away.
 * He sports a design based on a Fairchild C-119 Flying Boxcar.

Dynamite
Dynamite is the leader of the Smokejumpers.

The Smokejumpers are a fearless team of grounded firefighters, led by the strong and sassy Dynamite—so named because you don’t wanna set her off.

In Planes: Fire & Rescue, Dynamite was sent out into all of the wildfires along with the rest of the Smokejumpers, although they almost got caught in one, but Dusty and Blade Ranger saved them. After Dusty, Lil' Dipper, Windlifter and Cabbie take out a fire blocking the evacuees at the exit of Piston Peak National Park, Dynamite and the rest of the Smokejumpers parachute out of Cabbie and remove the debris on the road so the evacuees can proceed.

At the end, she and the other Smokejumpers perform at Propwash Junction's Corn Festival.

Pinecone
Pinecone is a member of the Smokejumpers.

Pinecone, equipped with a rake tool to clear brush and debris, is an easygoing southern soul.

In Planes: Fire & Rescue, Pinecone was sent out into all of the wildfires along with the rest of the Smokejumpers, although they almost got caught in one, but Dusty and Blade Ranger saved them. After watching an episode of the television show CHoPs (which Pinecone is a big fan of), she explains that the mystery of Blade working as a firefighter after starring on TV is like when her fiancé mysteriously vanished. After Dusty, Lil' Dipper, Windlifter and Cabbie take out a fire blocking the evacuees at the exit of Piston Peak National Park, Pinecone and the rest of the Smokejumpers parachute out of Cabbie and remove the debris on the road so the evacuees can proceed.

At the end, she and the other Smokejumpers perform at Propwash Junction's Corn Festival.

Avalanche
Avalanche is a Smokejumpers member.

Avalanche earned his name after triggering a massive slide, but the bulldozer—who coincidently lacks an “inside voice”—claims he was nowhere near that snow bank.

In Planes: Fire & Rescue, Avalanche was sent out into all of the wildfires along with the rest of the Smokejumpers, although they almost got caught in one, but Dusty and Blade Ranger saved them. After Dusty, Lil' Dipper, Windlifter and Cabbie take out a fire blocking the evacuees at the exit of Piston Peak National Park, Avalanche and the rest of the Smokejumpers parachute out of Cabbie and remove the debris on the road so the evacuees can proceed.

At the end, he and the other Smokejumpers perform at Propwash Junction's Corn Festival.

Blackout
Blackout is a Smokejumpers member.

Tough and over-eager Blackout once accidentally sawed down an electrical line, cutting power to the lodge for weeks and sending shockwaves through his short-term memory—at least he thinks so.

In Planes: Fire & Rescue, Blackout was sent out into all of the wildfires along with the rest of the Smokejumpers, although they almost got caught in one, but Dusty and Blade Ranger saved them. After Dusty, Lil' Dipper, Windlifter and Cabbie take out a fire blocking the evacuees at the exit of Piston Peak National Park, Blackout and the rest of the Smokejumpers parachute out of Cabbie and remove the debris on the road so the evacuees can proceed.

At the end, he and the other Smokejumpers perform at Propwash Junction's Corn Festival.

Drip
Drip is a skidsteer.

Drip, an outgoing dude who’s always leaking oil, uses a skid-steer claw to clear fallen trees and brush.

In Planes: Fire & Rescue, Drip was sent out into all of the wildfires along with the rest of the Smokejumpers, although they almost got caught in one, but Dusty and Blade Ranger saved them. After Dusty, Lil' Dipper, Windlifter and Cabbie take out a fire blocking the evacuees at the exit of Piston Peak National Park, Drip and the rest of the Smokejumpers parachute out of Cabbie and remove the debris on the road so the evacuees can proceed.

At the end, he and the other Smokejumpers perform at Propwash Junction's Corn Festival.

Secretary of the Interior
Secretary of the Interior is an outsdoorman.

Secretary of the Interior has many responsibilities, but none is more important than overseeing the National Parks. This rugged outdoorsman loves being in nature; he spends most of his time away from his office in Washington, visiting the National Forests and Parks and helping to spread his message of conservation.
 * His design is inspired by a 1968 Ford Bronco.

Harvey and Winnie
Harvey and Winnie are two RVs.

Harvey & Winnie met many moons ago when Harvey was the manager of an RV tire store and Winnie was his showroom model. The loving couple travel to Piston Peak Park, where they celebrated their honeymoon 50 years ago.

In Planes: Fire & Rescue, they are first seen in the lineup of traffic entering Piston Peak National Park. Winnie comments that the scenery is like how she remembers it. Harvey, who was carrying pairs of tires on his roof, asks Winnie how many she brought, only for her to respond that Harvey had spoiled it.

Later, they come to the grand reopening party of Cad Spinner's Grand Fusel Lodge. They explain to Dusty Crophopper and Lil' Dipper that they are celebrating their fiftieth wedding anniversary by going to the spot of the park where they had their first kiss. Upon hearing Harvey say that there was a bridge and waterfall, Dusty tells them that the spot is Augerin Canyon near Upper Whitewall Falls. Dipper decides to let Harvey and Winnie join her, Dusty, Windlifter and Maru for a drink outside, where they have a talk, which Harvey suggests to Dusty that his firefighting job should be his second career to racing.

After the firefighters put out a fire at the park's exit the next day, they hear from Patch that Harvey and Winnie are trapped on Whitewall Falls' bridge set on fire. Dusty rushes to the scene, and does a vertical climb up the waterfall at his maximum speed to scoop water into his pontoons. As the bridge starts to collapse, Blade Ranger arrives and holds Harvey and Winnie away from the edge as Dusty pours water onto the flames, enabling Harvey and Winnie to drive to safety as well as causing Dusty's gearbox to give out after redlining, making him crash in the forest.

After Dusty returns to Propwash Junction with a new gearbox from the firefighting team along with being certified as a firefighter, Harvey and Winnie attend an aerial show starring the colleagues from Piston Peak.
 * The filmmakers say that the characters' actors Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara brought just the right chemistry to the roles.
 * Coincidentally, Harvey and Winnie were celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary in Piston Peak National Park, while Stiller and Meara celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary in 2014.

Nick Loopin' Lopez
Nick Loopin' Lopez is a helicopter cop.

By 1978, Nick “Loop’n” Lopez was America’s favorite helicopter cop, featured on TV’s CHoPs, a show about two California Helicopter Patrol choppers. Nick, the troublemaking macho young officer, got the nickname “Loop’n” from his signature inside loop, which no other helicopter could perform.

In Planes: Fire & Rescue, Nick appears in an episode of CHoPs that Dusty Crophopper and all of the firefighters except Blade Ranger were watching called "Disco Inferno", where he helps Blazin' Blade to catch a criminal named Chuck Shocks and save a female car named Pinta from a burning studio. Afterwards, Sergeant "Rhodey" Rhodes Graeter tells him and Blade that they did a good job, and Nick states to Blade that Pinta has a sister named Peggy.

While Blade was being repaired after he got injured upon protecting Dusty from a fire, Maru tells Dusty that Nick was killed in a severe accident during filming of CHoPs ' 139th episode, and Blade was unable to save Nick in time, resulting in the show being cancelled, and Blade to quit his job as an actor and move to Piston Peak National Park.
 * "CHoPs" is a parody of CHiPs, a real TV show that Nick's actor Erik Estrada starred in as highway patrolman Frank Poncherello.
 * Nick and Blazin' Blade Ranger have the exact same helmets as Estrada and Larry Wilcox in the show CHiPs.
 * Coincidentally enough, CHiPs was cancelled after 139 episodes due to Erik Estrada being injured in a severe accident. However, unlike Nick, who perished, Estrada actually eventually survived and recovered from that accident, which is why he is there to voice Nick today.

Mayday
Mayday is the fire truck in Propwash Junction.

Feisty old Mayday has been Propwash Junction’s fire and rescue truck for … ever. He’s always rarin’ to go, but he’s lost a little speed over the years. Plus, his hoses are leaky and he can’t see much without his glasses. Propwash Junction is growing fast thanks to resident-turn-big-time-racer Dusty, so Mayday might be in over his headlights.

In Planes: Fire & Rescue, Mayday congratulates Dusty on his racing, and embarrasses him, Chug and Sparky when showing some Rust-eze Medicated Bumper Ointment put on his bumper by Dottie. When Skipper and Dusty get ready to do some flying, Mayday tells them not to stay out after sunset.

When Dusty goes on a defiant flight testing his limits after his gearbox gets damaged, he has a hard landing with engine trouble at Propwash Junction's airport, setting a fire at Chug and Dottie's Fill n' Fly. Mayday tries to put it out with his hose, only to find it leaking. He, Chug, Dusty and Skipper work together to topple the water tower and put the fire out, but a government inspector named Ryker closes the airport the next day until Mayday has a second firefighter hired, putting the annual Corn Festival under threat due to that no plane will be able to fly to Propwash Junction. Disappointed, Mayday goes to his fire station, thinking that his days of firefighting are over. Dusty notices a photo of Mayday and a firefighting plane. Mayday explains to him about aerial firefighters, who drop water instead of dusting crops, making Dusty decide to help Mayday out by being a second firefighter. Mayday tells him to go to Piston Peak National Park to get certified by his old friend Blade Ranger, and wishes Dusty good luck as he leaves.

After Chug and Sparky tell Dusty on the radio that they have ordered a new gearbox that will come in a couple of days, Mayday tries to sound his new siren being put on by Dottie, but instead releases a rustic sound resembling flatulence, to which Dottie explains that she hasn't hooked it up yet.

Mayday later attends the Corn Festival after the airport is re-opened, congratulating Dusty after Blade certifies him as a firefighter.
 * Fkyf.png Disney's website for Planes: Fire & Rescue, he is mistakenly referred to as "Mayfair".
 * His design is based on the 1943 Fordson Tender.

Cad Spinner
Cad Spinner is the main antihero of Planes: Fire & Rescue. He is the former superintendent of Piston Peak National Park.

Park superintendent Cad Spinner is a luxury Sport Utility Vehicle who’s better suited for a country club than the country. Self-centered and passionate about profits, Cad diverts a big chunk of the firefighters’ budget to his lodge restoration project. Though completely turned off by dirt, Cad’s not opposed to playing dirty to get his way.

In Planes: Fire & Rescue, Cad first appears checking on the people going into the Grand Fusel Lodge while Dusty Crophopper flies over it.

Later, he comes to the firefighters' base to tell Blade Ranger that one of his staff members had soaked fire retardant on two campers and their campfire, which Dusty, who was responsible for it as he didn't know, apologizes, but Blade tells Cad that the team needs to train. However, Cad got excited as soon as he saw Dusty, mistaking him for Ripslinger at first, and tells him that he is invited to the grand reopening party at his lodge the next day, along with that the Secretary of the Interior would be coming. He explains to Blade that a big party at his lodge would make for happy campers rather than spilling mud on people, but Blade tells him that he packs too many happy campers in the park and lodge. Cad tells him that he has Pulaski, a structural fire engine, to protect the lodge, to which Blade responds that it is all about protecting the humanity, not just the lodge. As Blade continues talking, Lil' Dipper whispers to Dusty that Cad got the park service to save 80 percent of their budget to his lodge restoration project. As he leaves, he tells Blade that "Dusty Cropslinger's even more famous than you, Blazin' Blade!" According to Windlifter, he waxes himself daily.

At the party, he greets the Secretary, who later asks how the park's wildlife population is. Cad replies that there will be plenty of party animals if he comes to the party night, and later stated Ol' Jammer as a "bumper kisser." Later, he told Dusty that he might get a promotion, but in the middle of the talk, he went to talk to another famous guy named Boat Reynolds.

The next day, while the firefighters are fighting a large forest fire which was caused when Cad's visiting VIPs flew too low and made air eddies that blew embers about, Blade tells Maru, the firefighers' mechanic, to report Cad that the fire is about four hours away from the lodge and that the tourists will need to evacuate. However, Cad refuses to get everyone out of the lodge, saying that he won't evacuate at that moment since being the superintendent for five years.

Outside, when Cad gives a speech to the tourists and the Secretary about the grand reopening of the lodge, André, the lodge's concierge was talking to Pulaski about a large forest fire coming towards the lodge after Cad's visiting VIPs flew too low and made air eddies which blew embers about. Cad overhears them, pauses his speech, and argues with Pulaski on giving the speech, and even says that he's been saying the same thing when Pulaski keeps correcting him upon mispronouncing his name. Pulaski explains to Cad that the fire is getting closer to the lodge. André suggests to Cad that they should turn on the roof sprinklers, and Pulaski and Ol' Jammer tell Cad that they need to evacuate. After the Secretary tells Cad to let them see the sign, André, Pulaski and Jammer argue that the fire will get worse, before Cad angrily insults them by saying that André is a glorified bellboy, Pulaski is an overpriced sprinkler, and Jammer is old and has a dumb hat, and says that he is the park superintendent and getting the moment of reopening his lodge, before coming back to the crowd, and revealing the lodge's sign before one of the tourists screams. Cad, at first, thought that they were being rude until they mention the fire, which Cad then notices, and the tourists all drive away. As the guests sleeping inside the lodge exit, Cad tells them to calm down, saying that it is only a small fire, and that they should come back the following year.

As the fire got close to the lodge, Cad was trying to get some water to the lodge's roof sprinklers. He orders André to switch the main water supply to them, but André explains that the firefighters need it to make their fire retardant. However, Cad refuses to listen, stating that he doesn't care, and switches the water supply himself, while André leaves with his luggage.

After Dusty got fixed by Maru, he was informed that Jammer had become the superintendent after Cad got fired by the Secretary for not caring about the park, but just about the lodge. In the end credits, it is shown that he now works as a park ranger in Death Valley.
 * His design is a combination of a 2002-2006 Cadillac Escalade's body, a 2007-2014 Escalade's greenhouse design, and a Pontiac's front grille design.
 * His license plate reads "SUPER1".
 * Filmmakers wanted to ensure moviegoers sensed just how rotten park superintendent Cad Spinner really is, so they placed trash bins or dumpsters near the SUV in nearly every shot in which he appears.

Maru
Maru is a mechanic tug.

Maru is the mechanic tug at the Piston Peak Air Attack base. Friendly with a sarcastic sense of humor, he’s been around a long time and has the cluttered hangar to prove it. With no budget for new parts, Maru’s many shelves of old parts and machinery come in quite handy. The repurposing pro’s motto? “It’s better than new!”
 * He boasts the first opposable thumb in the Planes films.

Ol' Jammer
Ol' Jammer is a tour bus.

A loyal and trustworthy tour bus at Piston Peak for 72 years, Ol’ Jammer knows every trail, stream, rock and tree. This strong and seasoned bus with a gentle soul is eager to share his vast knowledge of the park’s history with the multitude of admiring daily visitors.

Pulaski
Pulaski is a fire truck.

Pulaski is Piston Peak’s structural engine, responsible for protecting the buildings and bridges in the park. With a 2000-gallon tank, he can pump water at 1000 gallons per minute, but protecting the renovated Grand Fusel Lodge—considered the largest log structure in the world—may prove impossible, even for Pulaski.

In Planes: Fire & Rescue, Pulaski works as a firefighter to protect Piston Peak National Park from fires, having been put under charge by Cad Spinner to protect the Grand Fusel Lodge. He first appears at the lodge's grand reopening party, telling Cad and the Secretary of the Interior that the fire in Upper Whitewall Falls has been put out.

The next day, he is with his pitty Rake after getting a cup of coffee, when they overhear Cad arguing with Maru on getting the tourists to evacuate due to a wildfire heading toward the lodge. As Cad gives a speech to the tourists and the Secretary outside the lodge, Pulaski tells [André, the lodge's concierge, that the tourists' lives are at risk. Overhearing the two, Cad pauses the speech and informs Pulaski that he is trying to give a speech, before Pulaski argues with him on mispronouncing his name. Immediately, he tells Cad that the fire is getting closer, and that the tourists need to leave. However, Cad does not listen when the Secretary asks him to show them the plaque, which makes Pulaski and Ol' Jammer unhappy with Cad's selfishness. They both argue that it will get worse if they wait longer for the lodge to be unveiled, before Cad shuts them up and gives them insults, with Pulaski being called an "overpriced sprinkler", and angrily informs that he is waiting to unveil his lodge. Going back to his original spot, Cad reveals the plaque, before the tourists then notice the fire and panic.

As Jammer and the Secretary help the road vehicles to evacuate, Pulaski helps the planes to take off, alerting them to avoid the smoke and stay above the walls of the canyon. As a biplane struggles to get her engine to start, another plane impatiently drives in front in her, before Pulaski warns him not to make cutsies, otherwise he would upset Rake. Obeying what Pulaski said, the plane then moves back as the biplane is finally able to take off, with Pulaski again informing his alert about keeping away from the smoke.

As the cars make their way through the exit, Pulaski uses his hose to shoot water at the fires, but the wind shifts, causing some sparks to ignite a building on the exit. Pulaski then shoots some water at it, but his hose then gets damaged by a fallen tree, leaving the exit blocked by the fire, which there is unfortunately no other way out of the park. Soon, the Air Attack team arrive, put out the fire and remove the debris, making the tourists able to proceed.

Five days later, Pulaski arrives at the firefighters' base with Jammer, André and Rake, feeling happy that Dusty Crophopper is alive after becoming unconscious from having an accident. When Dusty notices that Jammer is now the superintendent of Piston Peak, Pulaski explains to him that the Secretary had put Jammer in charge after firing Cad following his actions of diverting the main water line to his lodge's roof sprinklers. He then travels with Rake and most of the Piston Peak crew to Dusty's hometown Propwash Junction to hear from Ryker that the town's airport is reopened with Dusty becoming a firefighter, before attending at the Corn Festival to watch Dusty and the Air Attack team take part.


 * He is named after a fire fighting hand tool of the same name. It is part axe and part mattock, and named after its inventor Ed Pulaski, who was also known for his heroism in saving most of his crew during the Great Fire of 1910 by sheltering in an abandoned mine, which is also referenced by Blade's plan of him and Dusty to shelter in one.

Ryker
Ryker is an airport crash tender.

Ryker, a 17-year veteran of the Transportation Management Safety Team (TMST), not only lives by the book when it comes to airport accident investigations, he wrote the book. Nothing slips by this air safety investigator, so don’t even try.

In Planes: Fire & Rescue, after a fire was put out at Chug and Dottie's Fill n' Fly when Dusty accidentally clipped the tower while testing his limits with his gearbox damaged, Ryker arrives in Propwash Junction the next day along with his pitty Kurtz, accusing Mayday for the accident until Dusty explains what he did. Ryker then figures out that the town has no plans for emergencies, and decides to close the airport down until Mayday hires a second firefighter.

At the end, he re-opens the airport after Dusty comes back to Propwash Junction with the news of being certified by Blade Ranger as a firefighter.
 * He is fashioned after a Striker airport rescue and fire fighting truck.

Skipper Riley
Skipper Riley is an old plane that runs Skipper's Flight School.

In Planes: Fire & Rescue, he is first seen with Dottie, Sparky and Chug as they cheer on Dusty winning the first race, and watch his interview with Brent Mustangburger on the TV. Later, Skipper plans to do some flying with Dusty around the landscape of Propwash Junction. However, during the flight, Dusty's engine's gearbox becomes damaged due to too much over-revving.

Leadbottom becomes interested to welcome Dusty back into his job of crop dusting, but Skipper explains that it is not the best time. When no one was noticing, Dusty goes on a defiant flight testing his limits. Unfortunately in doing so, he has a hard landing with engine trouble at Propwash Junction's airport, causing a fire at Chug and Dottie's Fill n' Fly.

Mayday, the town's fire truck, tries to put it out with his fire hose, but it received several leaks. Skipper, Mayday, Dusty and Chug work together to topple the water tower and put out the fire. However, the accident leads to Ryker, a government inspector, closing the airport the next day until a second firefighter is hired. Aggrieved at his carelessness, Dusty offers to undergo training to be certified as a firefighter to meet the necessary regulations to reopen the airport. Skipper, Mayday, Dottie, Chug and Sparky bid farewell to Dusty as he travels to Piston Peak National Park to join a team of firefighters so to get certified as Propwash Junction's second firefighter.

After Dusty's days of training by Blade Ranger, he was told on the radio by his friends from Propwash Junction that they have ordered a gearbox which will arrive in a couple of days.

Later, Dusty is devastated by a call from Skipper, Dottie, Sparky and Chug, noting that it was the wrong gearbox, and all attempts at finding a replacement gearbox somewhere else have failed, meaning that his racing career is over.

After Dusty returns to Propwash Junction with a new gearbox from the firefighting team along with being certified as a firefighter, Skipper and the rest of the residents attend an aerial show starring the colleagues from Piston Peak.
 * Skipper's make (F4U Corsair) and Skull and Crossed Wrenches insignia on his engine cowling are clearly based upon the World War II US Navy Figher Squadron VF-17 ("The Jolly Rogers"). Skipper even has "VF-17" stenciled on his rear fuselage.

For more information on the character, see here.

Dottie
Dottie is Dusty Crophopper's personal pitty and the co-owner of Chug and Dottie's Fill n' Fly.

In Planes: Fire & Rescue, she is first seen with Skipper, Sparky and Chug as they cheer on Dusty winning the first race, and watch his interview with Brent Mustangburger on the TV.

Later, she states of having a love-hate relationship with Dusty, which is that she loves having him as her best customer, but hates what he does to himself as she finds out that while he was doing a training run with Skipper, his engine's gearbox became damaged due to too much over-revving. She explains that the type is out of production, to which Chug asked if she could make a new one, but she replied that it is too complex and has to be factory, and that Dusty will have to back out of racing or he will crash. To prevent this from happening, she installs a warning light on his panel that will go off if he goes into the red.

However, when no one was looking, Dusty goes on a defiant flight testing his limits. Unfortunately in doing so, he has a hard landing with engine trouble at Propwash Junction's airport, causing a fire at Chug and Dottie's Fill n' Fly. Mayday tries to put it out with his hose, but it turned out to be leaking. Dottie and Sparky unfasten the bolts on two of the water tower's poles so Mayday, Dusty, Chug and Skipper topple it over to put out the fire. However, the accident leads to Ryker, a government inspector, closing the airport due to inadequate firefighting personnel. Dottie and Sparky explain to the residents that a second firefighter is needed so Mayday can keep his job. Aggrieved at his carelessness, Dusty offers to undergo training to be certified as a firefighter to meet the necessary regulations to reopen the airport. Skipper, Mayday, Dottie, Chug and Sparky bid farewell to Dusty as he travels to Piston Peak National Park to join a team of firefighters so he can get certified as Propwash Junction's second firefighter.

While Chug and Sparky tell Dusty on the radio that they have found a new gearbox that will come in a couple of days, Dottie was working on Mayday's new siren, which he tries to sound it to Dusty, but instead makes a rustic sound, to which Dottie explains that she hasn't hooked it up yet.

Later, Dusty is devastated by a call from Skipper, Dottie, Sparky and Chug, noting that they got the wrong gearbox, and that his racing career is over.

After Dusty returns to Propwash Junction with a new gearbox from the firefighting team along with being certified as a firefighter, Dottie and the rest of the residents attend an aerial show starring the colleagues from Piston Peak.

Chug
Chug is a fuel truck who co-owns Chug and Dottie's Fill n' Fly.

His fuel tank and nozzle are used to refill planes and, on one occasion, Mayday the fire truck. He is good friends with Dottie and Sparky. He is also a friend and fan of Dusty Crophopper.

In Planes: Fire & Rescue, he congratulates Dusty on winning the first race. While Dusty was being interviewed by Brent Mustangburger, he said that he has Chug as a fuel truck anyone can ask for, which Sparky tells Chug that he is a gas consultant, and Chug replies that he is.

Later, as he fills Dusty up with fuel in Propwash Junction, he figures out that Dusty's secret was racing with his eyes closed when Sparky commented about the picture on the newspaper showing Dusty winning the Red Bulldozer with his eyes closed.

After Dusty had a problem occurring during his flight with Skipper around the landscape of Propwash Junction, Chug was worried that it was because of a problem with his fuel, which he had tested, but Dottie explained that Dusty's gearbox had become damaged, and that the type is out of production. Chug asked if Dottie could make a new one, but she replied that it is too complex, and that Dusty will have to back of racing or he will crash. She installs a warning light on Dusty's panel which will go off if he goes into the red.

At the Honkers bar, Sparky and Chug tell Dusty that they will try to find a new gearbox for him. Leadbottom, however, becomes interested to welcome Dusty back into his job of crop dusting, but Skipper explains that it is not the best time. However, when no one was looking, Dusty goes on a defiant flight testing his limits. Unfortunately in doing so, he has a hard landing with engine trouble at Propwash Junction's airport, causing a fire at Chug and Dottie's Fill n' Fly.

Mayday tries to put it out with his hose, only to find it leaking. He, Chug, Dusty and Skipper worked together to topple the water tower and put out the fire. However, the accident leads to Ryker, a government inspector, closing the airport the next day due to inadequate firefighting personnel. Aggrieved at his carelessness, Dusty offers to undergo training to be certified as a firefighter to meet the necessary regulations to reopen the airport. Skipper, Mayday, Dottie, Chug and Sparky bid farewell to Dusty as he travels to Piston Peak National Park to join a team of firefighters so to get certified as Propwash Junction's second firefighter.

After Dusty's days of training by Blade Ranger, Chug and Sparky tell him on the radio that they have found a new gearbox which will come in a couple of days.

Later, Dusty is devastated by a call from Skipper, Dottie, Sparky and Chug, noting that they got the wrong gearbox, and all attempts at finding a replacement gearbox somewhere else have failed, meaning that his racing career is over.

After Dusty returns to Propwash Junction with a new gearbox from the firefighting team along with being certified as a firefighter, Chug informs him that he had crowned as an official corn colonel with Sparky as his private niblet. Chug and the rest of the residents then attend an aerial show starring Dusty and the colleagues from Piston Peak.
 * He is inspired by Bob Leaders' disused fuel truck that was found in a grove of evergreen trees when the filmmakers traveled to Leaders Clear Lake Airport in Minnesota while touring regional airports in the Midwest for inspiration for their Propwash Junction setting.
 * Chug appears to be some old late 1940s Chevrolet truck judging by the shape of his grille.

Leadbottom
Leadbottom is a grumpy plane who spends his life doing work.

In Planes: Fire & Rescue, he appears when Dusty, Skipper, Chug and Sparky were at the Honkers bar, which after Dusty's engine's gearbox became damaged due to too much over-revving, Leadbottom was interested to have Dusty work with him as a crop duster again, but Skipper, Chug and Sparky disagree with him, saying that Dusty will get back to racing in no time.

The next day, he gets shocked at hearing that Ryker closed down Propwash Junction's airport after Dusty accidentally caused a fire at Chug and Dottie Fill n' Fly while testing his limits.

At the end, he attends the Corn Festival, which was saved after Dusty got certified as the town's second firefighter to get the airport reopened, to see Dusty and the Piston Peak Air Attack team take part.
 * Leadbottom's design is based on a PT-17 Stearman Biplane.

Muir
Muir is an old steam locomotive who works at the Piston Peak National Park.

In Planes: Fire & Rescue, he is first seen puffing along a train track as Dusty Crophopper flies past him upon arriving at Piston Peak National Park.

Later, he is seen transporting some guests, including the Secretary of the Interior, to the Grand Fusel Lodge for Cad Spinner's grand reopening party.

When a large forest fire comes towards the Grand Fusel Lodge, Muir departs with some of the evacuees. However, at the park's exit, he has to stop when a flaming tree falls on the track. Fortunately, the firefighters arrive, and Dusty puts out the flames on the tree, enabling Muir to proceed.
 * He is named after John Muir, a Scottish-American naturalist also referred to as the "Father of the National Parks".
 * Unlike Pramath, the steam train seen in Planes, Muir's mouth is on his smokebox instead of his headstock, due to having a cowcatcher.
 * Muir appears to be a Baldwin 2-6-0 (also known as a Mogul) steam locomotive built during the late 1800s.
 * It's unknown how Muir is able to move on his own in the first place, as he doesn't seem to have an engineer or a fireman (who would probably be pitties (forklifts) due to their small size) to shovel his coal for him.

Flap
Flap is a pickup truck.

In Planes: Fire & Rescue, he appears in the Honkers bar. He has only one line, where he says to Alice Brock, an employee who was serving him a drink, that a woman had left him for a hybrid who he didn't hear was coming.
 * His only line refers to the fact that hybrid cars drive quietly, which is why he didn't hear him coming.
 * On USA Today, he was referred to as "Bubba". He was called "Flap" in the Meet the Planes book.

LJH 86 Special
The LJH 86 Special is a racing plane.

In Planes: Fire & Rescue, he is seen in the first race. During the first race, Dusty Crophopper overtakes him before the finish line to win.
 * He is modeled after an Extra EA-300.
 * His die-cast packaging refers to him as "86 LJH Special".

Brent Mustangburger
Brent Mustangburger is an announcer for the Racing Sports Network.

In Planes: Fire & Rescue, he is first seen at the beginning, announcing the first race, and interviewing Dusty about his career, which Dusty responds that Skipper, Dottie and Chug had been helping him every step of the way. Later, he appears on a television screen inside the Honkers bar.
 * Brent is based on, voiced by and named after ESPN/ABC sportscaster Brent Musburger.
 * Brent Mustangburger is a reporter for the RSN (Racing Sports Network), which appeared prominently in Cars.
 * Brent is a 1964½ Ford Mustang Coupe.
 * His licence plate is BWM539. It represents the initials and the birthday (May 1939) of his voice actor Brent Woody Musburger.
 * The die-cast model of Brent has brown eyes, although Brent Mustangburger himself has green eyes.

For more information on the character, see here.

Patch
Patch is the Piston Peak Air Attack team's informant.

Patch is not only in charge of the smoke reports that come in from the emergency communication center, she is also Piston Peak Air Attack's meteorologist and DJ. Her collection of vinyl records is famous among collectors. She and Maru are the only members of the air attack crew who don't go out to fight the fires, so that leaves her time to perfect her playlist and keep the glass windows on her lookout tower spotless.

In Planes: Fire & Rescue, Patch informs the firefighters when a wildfire report has been received. She is first seen cleaning the window of the control tower when Dusty Crophopper arrives at the park. Later, after reporting a fire, she puts her record player on and plays AC/DC's song "Thunderstruck".

Upon noticing Cad Spinner, the park's superintendent, Patch reports his arrival to the firefighters, telling them to be advised.

After the Smokejumpers are saved by Dusty from another wildfire, Patch reports to the firefighters that Dynamite reported saying the Smokejumpers are camping that night and will mop everything up the next day.

Later, Dusty reports to Patch that Blade Ranger is down after shielding him from a large wildfire in an old mine, to which she sends Windlifter to help Blade back to the base. When the water supply becomes dry due to Cad switching it to the Grand Fusel Lodge to protect it from the fire, Lil' Dipper asks Patch if she knows what the nearby lake looks like. Patch responds that she isn't sure because the visibility is boxed in by the fire and smoke.

After the firefighters manage to put out the fire at the park's exit for the guests, Patch reports to Windlifter that Harvey and Winnie are trapped on a burning bridge at Upper Whitewall Falls, to which Dusty flies off to save them.

Later, she watches as Maru fixes Dusty after he crashes due to his gearbox failing. After Dusty wakes up five days later, Patch reports to the firefighters that Ol' Jammer, Pulaski, Rake and André have arrived, telling Dusty that Cad got fired from his job as the superintendent, with Jammer taking over.
 * Patch's Polish name is "Paćka".

André
André is the Grand Fusel Lodge's concierge.

In Planes: Fire & Rescue, André first appears beside Cad Spinner when he is checking on the people going into the Grand Fusel Lodge while Dusty Crophopper flies over it. Later, he is seen talking to a married couple at the lodge's grand reopening party, telling them to enjoy their stay.

When Cad gives a speech to the tourists and the Secretary of the Interior about the grand reopening of the lodge, André was talking to Pulaski about a large forest fire coming towards the lodge. Cad overhears them, pauses his speech, and argues with Pulaski on giving the speech. André suggests to Cad that they should turn on the roof sprinklers, and Pulaski and Ol' Jammer tell Cad that they need to evacuate. After the Secretary tells Cad to let them see the plaque, André, Pulaski and Jammer argue that the fire will get worse, before Cad angrily insults them by saying that André is a glorified bell boy, Pulaski is an overpriced sprinkler, and Jammer is old and has a dumb hat, and says that he is the park superintendent and getting the moment of reopening his lodge, before coming back to the crowd, and revealing the lodge's plaque before the tourists notice the fire and drive away. André alerts the tourists staying in the lodge that they need to evacuate and must not panic. He gets some of the tourists onto Muir, the steam train, but when the train did not have space for the rest of the tourists, he tells them to follow a staff member to the main road exit.

He later argued with Cad, who was trying to get some water to the lodge's roof sprinklers. Cad tells him to switch the main water line to them, but André explains that the firefighters need it to make their fire retardant. However, Cad refuses to listen, stating that he doesn't care, and switches the water supply himself, while André leaves with his luggage, showing that he stopped working for Cad.

At the end, he arrives at the firefighters' base along with Pulaski, his pitty Rake, and Ol' Jammer after Dusty gets fixed by Maru, informing him that Jammer was made the superintendent after Cad got fired for caring about only the lodge.

Gunnar Viking
Gunnar Viking is a Swedish racing plane in the WATG Rally. His racing number is #12.

In Planes: Fire & Rescue, he is seen in the first race. Dusty Crophopper overtakes him and all the other racers to win.

Tsubasa
Tsubasa (翼) is a racing competitor in the Wings Around the Globe rally as racer #23.

In Planes: Fire & Rescue, he is seen in the first race. Dusty Crophopper overtakes him and all the other racers to win.
 * His design is a combination of a Extra EA-300's fuselage, and a Granville R-1's vertical stabilizer.
 * In Japanese, "Tsubasa" means wing.

Production
According to director/co-writer Roberts "Bobs" Gannaway, "The first film [directed by Klay Hall] was a race film. I wanted to look at a different genre, in this case, an action-disaster film." Production on Planes: Fire & Rescue began six months after the start of the previous film. "We’ve been working on this film for nearly four years." The filmmakers researched the world of air-attack teams and smokejumpers by working with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, and sent a crew to the US Forest Services' annual training exercises for smokejumpers. Gannaway explained "We actually hooked cameras onto their helmets and had them drop out of the airplane so we could catch it on film." Nearly a year of research was done before the filmmakers started work on the story. The idea of Dusty becoming a fire and rescue plane was based on reality. Gannaway stated that during their research, they discovered that in 1955, crop dusters were among the first planes to be used in aerial fire-fighting, "There was a group of cropdusters who reworked their planes so they could drop water." Gannaway also noted that in the first film "Dusty is doing things to his engine that should not be done to it—he is stressing the engine out and causing severe damage. It’s great that the first movie teed this up without intending to. We just built on it, and the results were remarkable." Producer Ferrell Barron stated "I think we’ve all experienced some kind of loss at some point in our lives—an end of an era, a lost love, a failed career. We’ve all had to recalibrate. In Planes: Fire & Rescue, Dusty can’t go back to being a crop duster, he left that behind. He has to move forward."

A pre-release screening of the film was conducted at the 2014 National Native Media Conference, where screenwriter Jeffrey M. Howard and art director Toby Wilson joined actor Wes Studi in Q & A to discuss the Native American themes in the film. They noted that the character of Windlifter, and the folkloric story he tells of how Coyote was renewed by fire, was developed in consultation with Dr. Paul Apodaca, an expert on Native American myths and folklore.

Release
Planes: Fire & Rescue was released in theaters on July 18, 2014. The second official trailer for the film was released on April 8, 2014. The film's premiere was held at the El Capitan Theatre in Los Angeles on July 15, 2014.

Home media
Planes: Fire & Rescue was released on DVD, Blu-ray and Blu-ray 3D on November 4, 2014. Blu-ray bonus features include the exclusive six-minute animated short film Vitaminamulch: Air Spectacular, directed by Roberts Gannaway, in which Dusty and Chug participate in an air show disguised as absent stunt planes Air Devil Jones and Vandenomium. Additional material includes a mock-umentary called Welcome to Piston Peak!, a CHoPs TV promo, a featurette called Air Attack: Firefighters From The Sky; a behind-the-scenes look at real smokejumpers and firefighters and making of the film with director Roberts Gannaway and producer Ferrell Barron, a music video of "Still I Fly" by Spencer Lee, two deleted scenes with filmmaker intros, and two two-minute animated shorts featuring Dipper and the Smokejumpers.

Critical response
On the critical response aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds a rating of 44% based on 87 reviews. The site's consensus reads: "Although it's too flat and formulaic to measure up against the best family-friendly fare, Planes: Fire and Rescue is a passable diversion for much younger viewers". On Metacritic, the film has a score of 48 out of 100, based on 28 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".

Todd McCarthy of The Hollywood Reporter gave the film a mixed review, saying "Beautiful to look at, this is nothing more than a Little Engine That Could story refitted to accommodate aerial action and therefore unlikely to engage the active interest of anyone above the age of about 8, or 10 at the most." Justin Chang of Variety gave the film a positive review, saying "There are honestly stirring moments to be found in the movie's heartfelt tribute to the virtues of teamwork, courage and sacrifice, and in its soaring 3D visuals." Stephen Whitty of the Newark Star-Ledger gave the film two and a half stars out of four, saying "There are enough silly jokes and simple excitement here ... to keep the youngest ones interested, and a few mild puns to occasionally make the adults smile." Alan Scherstuhl of The Village Voice gave the film a negative review, saying "There's a fire. And a rescue. And lots of static, TV-quality scenes that drably cut from one car or plane to another as they sit in garages and discuss the importance of believing in yourself." Soren Anderson of The Seattle Times gave the film two and a half stars out of four, saying "Disney's Planes: Fire & Rescue isn't half bad. Kids should enjoy it and their parents won't be bored." Sara Stewart of the New York Post gave the film two out of four stars, saying "It's generic stuff, unless you're a kid who's really into playing with toy planes and trains and cars." Stephan Lee of Entertainment Weekly gave the film a B, saying "Canny references to '70s television and some genuinely funny moments will give grown-ups enough fuel to cross the finish line." A.A. Dowd of The A.V. Club gave the film a C-, saying "It's nice to look at, easy to watch, and impossible to remember for the length of a car-ride home."

Joe Williams of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch gave the film two and a half stars out of four, saying "Without the kindling of character development, Planes: Fire and Rescue is no smoldering success, but if Disney's flight plan is to share Pixar's airspace, it's getting warmer." Peter Hartlaub of the San Francisco Chronicle gave the film two out of four stars, saying "It's not a poor movie. But it's definitely a better movie for the kids." Claudia Puig of USA Today gave the film two out of four stars, saying "With the lackluster quality of its characters - aircraft, a smattering of trucks, RVs and motorcycles - the movie makes Pixar's Cars and its sequel look like masterpieces." Colin Covert of the Star Tribune gave the film three out of four stars, saying "There are a scattering of inside gags, asides and blink-and-you-missed-it details for the parents. The film's focus, though, is pleasing the milk-and-cookies crowd." Mark Feeney of The Boston Globe gave the film two and a half stars out of four, saying "Most DisneyToons releases are direct-to-video. That lowly status shows here in the pokey storytelling, dreadful score, and generally tired comedy." Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles Times gave the film a positive review, saying What this Disney feature lacks in the title department it makes up for with fluid visuals and fast-moving action of the, yes, firefighting variety." Linda Barnard of the Toronto Star gave the film two and a half stars out of four, saying "For the most part, Planes: Fire & Rescue is more about chuckles than big guffaws, coupled with thrilling 3-D flight and firefighting action scenes and lessons about friendship, respect and loyalty." Ben Kenigsberg of The New York Times gave the film a mixed review, saying "In 3-D, the firefighting scenes are visually striking - with plumes of smoke and chemical dust - though the backgrounds, like other aspects of the film, lack dimension."

Bill Zwecker of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film three out of four stars, saying "Planes: Fire & Rescue is a good improvement over Planes, which Disney released last year. The story is stronger, there are some wonderful additions to the voice talent and the 3D cinematography is well-utilized." James Rocchi of The Wrap gave the film three out of four stars, saying "As it is in the merchandising aisle, so it is on the big screen: Planes: Fire and Rescue is precisely long, competent, and entertaining enough to be sold, and sold well." David Hiltbrand of The Philadelphia Inquirer gave the film one and a half stars out of four, saying "The animation in Planes: Fire & Rescue is considerably better, the landscapes grander, and the 3-D flight and firefighting scenes more exciting. But you get the same lame puns wedged into a succession of situations, rather than a story." Jordan Hoffman of the New York Daily News gave the film two out of five stars, saying "The meek action plays to the under-10 crowd, but the groaner puns will play only to masochists. Meanwhile, the 3-D ticket upcharge here is a big ripoff - the extra dimension is unnecessary." Lisa Kennedy of The Denver Post gave the film a positive review, saying "Vivid and folksy, Fire & Rescue nicely exceeds expectations dampened by last summer's stalled-out Planes." Catherine Bray of Time Out gave the film one out of five stars, saying "Displaying a weird lack of memorable or endearing characters, this animated effort feels more like a direct-to-video job from the 1990s than a fully fledged John Lasseter–exec-produced theatrical release."

Box office
As of November 9, 2014, Planes: Fire & Rescue had grossed $59.1 million in North America, and $80.1 million in other countries, for a worldwide total of $139.3 million. In North America, the film earned $6.29 million on its opening day, and opened to number three in its first weekend, with $17.5 million, behind Dawn of the Planet of the Apes and The Purge: Anarchy. In its second weekend, the film dropped to number five, grossing an additional $9.5 million. In its third weekend, the film dropped to number six, grossing $6 million. In its fourth weekend, the film dropped to number ten, grossing $2.5 million.

Soundtrack
Mark Mancina, who composed the music for the first film, returned for the sequel. In addition, Brad Paisley wrote and performed a song for the film titled "All In". Paisley also performed a song titled "Runway Romance", co-written by Bobs Gannaway and Danny Jacob. The soundtrack album was released on July 15, 2014.

Tracks

 * 1) "Still I Fly" - Spencer Lee
 * 2) "Runway Romance" - Brad Paisley
 * 3) "All In" - Brad Paisley
 * 4) "Planes: Fire & Rescue - Main Title" (score)
 * 5) "Propwash" (score)
 * 6) "Out of Production" (score)
 * 7) "Dusty Crash Lands" (score)
 * 8) "Fire!" (score)
 * 9) "An All New Mayday" (score)
 * 10) "Sad Mayday" (score)
 * 11) "Pontoons" (score)
 * 12) "A Special Kind of Plane" (score)
 * 13) "Training Dusty" (score)
 * 14) "We Got the Gear Box" (score)
 * 15) "Cad" (score)
 * 16) "Blazin' Blade Mystery" (score)
 * 17) "Mystery of Blaze-Lightning" (score)
 * 18) "Lightning Storm Fire" (score)
 * 19) "(It's) Hip to Be Cad" (score)
 * 20) "Harvey & Winnie" (score)
 * 21) "Cheers" (score)
 * 22) "Nobody Has Your Gear Box" (score)
 * 23) "Fire By the Lodge" (score)
 * 24) "Behind Enemy Lines" (score)
 * 25) "Evacuation" (score)
 * 26) "Blade Is Down" (score)
 * 27) "Loopin' Lopez" (score)
 * 28) "Tourist Trapped" (score)
 * 29) "Fire Heroes" (score)
 * 30) "Rescue Harvey & Winnie" (score)
 * 31) "Dusty Saves the Day" (score)
 * 32) "Saving Dusty" (score)
 * 33) "You Had Us Worried" (score)

Video Game
A video game based on the film was released for the Wii, Wii U, Nintendo DS and Nintendo 3DS on November 4, 2014, and was published by Little Orbit.

Gameplay
Fasten your seatbelts and prepare for sky-high fun as players embark on fire-and-rescue emergencies with all their favorite characters from the movie! Inspired by Disney's adventure-comedy adventure film, the Disney Planes: Fire & Rescue video game continues the storyline as players join the Piston Peak Air Attack team to fight fires and rescue those in need. Kids will embark on an adventure playing as any one of nine playable characters from the big screen including world-famous air racer Dusty and a new crop of characters Blade, Dipper, Dynamite and more! Together, kids will combine heroic action and teamwork as they scoop up water, drop smokejumpers and bulldoze debris in an effort to battle massive wildfires.

Players will soar across rich environments that feature iconic monuments and structures from the film as they participate in two exciting modes of play: Fire & Rescue and Training Academy. Take to the skies with 12 story missions and more than 30 training academy missions as players operate planes, helicopters and ground vehicles as to respond to emergencies. Heroes in training can "earn their wings" as they progress through training and story missions to reach new heights!

Playable characters

 * Dusty Crophopper (firefighter paint job)
 * Blade Ranger
 * Lil' Dipper
 * Windlifter
 * Cabbie
 * Dynamite
 * Avalanche
 * Blackout

Other characters

 * Harvey and Winnie
 * Ol' Jammer
 * Buck and Doe

Trivia

 * Unlike Planes: The Video Game, this game was released at the same time as the film's home video release instead of around its theatrical release.

Potential Sequel
It has been confirmed by Carlos Alazraqui that the Planes series will be a trilogy. A Disney staff member also stated that Planes 3 is in story development. Instead of publishing an Art of book for the first film, Chronicle Books published The Art of Planes (with art from the sequel) to coincide with the release of Planes: Fire & Rescue.

Besides the Planes series, DisneyToon is considering to make more spin-offs that would feature other vehicles like boats and trains, and which may go into production if Planes is well received. John Lasseter said: "I kept thinking about—I’m a big train fanatic. I love trains. And I started thinking about trains, and boats and airplanes. And I kept wanting to have more and more of those type of characters. [...] It’s one of the ideas, that there will be an ongoing series. It almost starts getting into this thing where we fall in love with these plane characters, we want to see more and more stories with them. And then you start doing other vehicles and stuff like that. Yeah. So it kind of is a bigger idea that can keep expanding."

Trivia

 * Fire&rescueeasteregg1.pngo cans are seen in the Honkers bar.
 * Aside from the new title, the Planes logo appears to have a few small changes. For example:
 * The silver metal has been changed to bronze.
 * The small star below the title "Planes" has been changed to a sort of firehouse symbol, or the number "2" for countries where the film is titled Planes 2.
 * Planes: Fire & Rescue is the fourth entry in the Cars franchise. More Cars films are planned for the future, such as Planes 3  and Cars 3.
 * In addition to car-ification and plane-ification, some aspects of Piston Peak National Park appear to be train-ified.
 * Known as a SEAT (Single Engine Air Tanker), crop dusters were among the first wildfire air attack aircraft. The first operational air tanker was a repurposed crop duster, which made the first air drop on the Mendocino National Forest in 1955.
 * Blade Ranger and Windlifter are both helicopters, so filmmakers turned to world-renowned aerobatic helicopter pilot Chuck Aaron to ensure they captured the helicopter flight authentically. Blade Ranger pulls some tricky maneuvers in the film that were reviewed and validated by Aaron.
 * The film’s setting is inspired by elements from a host of national parks, including Yosemite and Yellowstone.
 * National Parks Director Jonathan Jarvis was invited to DisneyToon Studios to view the film. He was thrilled with the attention to detail like the inclusion of rocking chairs in front of the fireplace.
 * Yellowstone’s Old Faithful Inn served as inspiration for the film’s Grand Fusel Lodge.
 * The railway station attached to the Grand Fusel Lodge was inspired by an actual station that once existed near Yellowstone’s north entrance and was designed by Robert Reamer, the architect of the Old Faithful Inn.
 * Playing upon the theme of second chances and based on filmmakers’ real-life observations during research trips to aerial firefighting stations, much of the Piston Peak Air Attack Base set is made up of repurposed structures. Filmmakers learned that budgets are traditionally stretched by reusing items, so they incorporated the practice in Planes: Fire & Rescue. Maru is the ringleader when it comes to repurposing, repeating the mantra, ‘It’s better than new.’
 * Mcqueencameoevidence.png picture of Lightning McQueen is seen on a racing newspaper that Sparky was reading, while Sarge was seen on a photo in Mayday's garage.
 * Mayday states that he uses Rust-eze Medicated Bumper Ointment. Around the same time, he uses Lighting McQueen's famous catchphrase "Ka-chow!" as he shows off his rear bumper.
 * The "red stuff" being dropped from the airplanes is Long Term Fire Retardant called Phos-Chek. It has been used by the US Forest Service for 50 years, and is used to create a containment line around a wildfire. It is dropped as a liquid, and will remain effective until it is washed off by heavy rain. The red color is used so pilots can see where to drop the next load to tie in with the line of previous drops.
 * Blade Ranger was in a series called CHoPs (about the California Helicopter Patrol) with his partner Nick Lopez. Lopez is voiced by Erik Estrada, who played Ponch in the real TV series CHiPs (about the California Highway Patrol). Additionally, CHiPs and the fictional CHoPs both lasted for 139 episodes (in the hangar, Dipper describes the show as "139 episodes of law-breaking love"). Also, animator Piero Piluso watched every episode of CHiPs to ensure the accuracy of CHoPs.
 * The "Howard the Truck" video is a parody of Howard the Duck, a 1986 film based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name.
 * Animators created more than 2.5 million trees.
 * 1,224 shots are featured in the movie, and half had visual effects.
 * The film is dedicated to the courageous firefighters who risk their lives every day.
 * The Honkers bar is a parody of the real-life Hooters.

Goofs

 * During the lodge evacuation scene, there is a biplane trying to get its engine started so it can take off. The propeller blades on the biplane are obviously pitched in the wrong direction to pull the airplane forward with the engine running, and would push it backwards instead.
 * In the movie, the red and green navigation lights are visible from aircraft in positions where they would not be visible in real life. The red light would be visible only through an arc of 110 degrees from straight ahead to port. The green light would be visible only through an arc of 110 degrees from straight ahead to starboard. This means that you would only see both read and green navigation lights if you were looking head on to the aircraft, and would see neither red nor green if within an arc of 140 degrees centered on straight behind (70 degrees either side).
 * In the lodge is a wood carving, asking the question: "What is the hopping motion observed in deer refered to as?" This has "referred" misspelled.