The Rocky Mountain Regional Office of the U.S. Forest Service on Wednesday will unveil a new airtanker base in Colorado Springs that officials say will increase capability and efficiency in supporting firefighting efforts in and around the city while also standing ready to augment fire crews anywhere in the state.

Lt. Gov. Dianne Primavera and Mayor John Suthers will join regional leaders in commemorating the completion of the base, which is located at the Colorado Springs Airport.

Wednesday’s reveal and ribbon-cutting will be the culmination of a five-year joint venture between the forest service, Peterson Space Force Base, the airport and the city, according to USFS airtanker specialist Robby Cline.

The funding for the base came from a federal grant via the Aviation Safety and Modernization Plan, an initiative designed to increase safety in all facets of U.S. aviation, Cline said.

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“We got the grant because we had a good plan in place, and because we already had an established partnership with the airport and Colorado Springs,” he said.

The new base comes at a critical time for the region. State fire officials have said warm weather and protracted drought conditions could make this the busiest wildfire season to date.

“With fire seasons getting busier and longer in duration, it made sense for us to increase our capabilities in this area,” Cline said.

The base will enhance firefighting capabilities within a 300-mile radius and allow tankers to reach anywhere in the state within an hour’s time, according to USFS officials. It will also provide the forest service with a hub that can deploy aerial support to nearby states.

“The rest of the Rocky Mountain region and surrounding states – Texas, Oklahoma, Utah, Wyoming – all of these states will also benefit from this closer reaction force,” Cline said.

Close proximity to Colorado Springs and El Paso County will make for shorter turnaround times as tankers will be able to deploy to a location, drop water or retardant on a fire, and quickly return to the base to reload, officials said. This will also reduce the amount of planes the forest service will need to combat certain kinds of fires.

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“We may only need two aircraft to do the same work as six that we would need from a little further away,” Cline said. “That frees up resources for other fires within the state.”

Logistically, Colorado Springs Airport was an ideal location for the base, according to Cline. Its long runways should make it easier for full, heavy tankers to take off.

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“Also, (commercial air traffic) is not as busy as larger airports which can delay us a little longer,” he said. “(Colorado Springs) is a really good for us to bring in our aircraft and sequence them with (normal airport operations).”

Wednesday’s opening is largely symbolic, Cline said. The base has been operational for weeks, having supported ground crews at the recent High Park and Pagosa Springs fires.

“We want to be an asset to Colorado Springs and the Rocky Mountain region for a long time to come,” Cline said.