A specialized wildland firefighting tool suspended from a helicopter that dispenses ignited blobs of gelled gasoline. The pilot flies over unburned fuel while a crew member operates the pump and ignition system. It allows crews to rapidly set large backfires or burnout operations in rugged, inaccessible terrain where ground ignition is too dangerous or slow.
Heard on the job
Air attack is bringing in the helitorch to burn out that ridge before the main front gets there.