The turbofan-powered aircraft carry up to 9,400[2] US gallons (35,583 liters) of water or fire retardant in an exterior belly-mounted tank, the contents of which can be released in eight seconds.

A Supplemental Type Certificate (STC) from the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for modifications of DC-10 aircraft to be used for the aerial dispersant of liquids was issued in March 2006.

[3] 10 Tanker then obtained a 14 CFR Part 137 Operating Certificate for aerial firefighting and Interagency Airtanker Board (IAB) approval for agency use.

The air tanker modification can be carried out to either a DC-10-10 or DC-10-30 series and involves the addition of an external tank and associated systems and support structure.

[8] The number of drops it can make in a day is only limited by the time it takes to reload the aircraft with water/fire retardant and fuel, as well as its need for a proper landing field, which may well be a considerable distance from the fire.

[9] However, despite its size, field experience has proven the plane’s agility above all types of terrain and in all atmospheric conditions deemed suitable for fixed wing operations in a Fire Traffic Area (FTA).

[10] Unlike most existing and proposed Large Air Tankers (LATs), the DC-10 arrives at a Fire Traffic Area weighing significantly less than its certified maximum gross takeoff weight (MGTOW).

10 Tanker Air Carrier added a second DC-10 (N17085), formerly flown by Continental Airlines, to its fleet in July 2008, to be used on an on-call basis.

The mayor of Victorville, Mike Rothschild, became concerned and investigated why it was not flying, finding that the approval process was expected to take up to six months to complete.

Leased by the National Aerial Firefighting Centre on behalf of the Victoria state government, the DC-10 became operational in Australia in early January 2010, based at Avalon.

The Premier of Victoria at the time, John Brumby, described the leasing of the tanker as being part of a record financing program to make sure the state was as fire-ready as possible.

Tanker 910 was expected to assist firefighters in tackling the Bastrop County Complex fire, the most destructive single wildfire in Texas history,[22] but it was not deployed due to delays in preparing the fire-retardant mixing facility at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport.

[27] Tanker 911 flew missions on the Taylor Bridge Fire in the Cascade Range, near Cle Elum, Washington, during the 2012 wildfire season.

In late September 2015 Tanker 910 flew from Albuquerque to Australia to begin an exclusive use contract with the State Government of New South Wales.

In the five months Tanker 910 was stationed in Australia, it flew 32 missions in the three Australian states of New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania.

Pilot Dan Montelli praised the tankers for their maneuverability within the steep mountain ridges and inside the tight canyons of the Catalina Foothills.

[37] At the same time, other DC-10 air tankers were deployed to assist with the Pine Gulch Fire burning over 125,000 acres north of Grand Junction, Colorado.

[citation needed] On August 14, 2021, a DC-10 Air Tanker was dispatched to a Forest Fire in Utah, known as the Parleys Canyon Wildfire.

A DC-10 Air Tanker, along with Utah National Guard Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawks and other forest fighting aircraft, contained the fire successfully on August 22, 2021.

In May 2022, DC-10 Air Tankers fought the Calf Canyon / Hermit's Peak complex fire west of Las Vegas, NM.

While on its third run over the White Fire in the Kern County mountains near Tehachapi, California, the aircraft was in a left bank while turning from base to final approach.

The aircraft climbed to altitude for a controllability check and to dump its load of retardant, then returned to its base in Victorville, California where it made an emergency landing and was grounded pending an investigation, inspection, and repairs.

[14][41][42] A post-incident investigation by the US National Transportation Safety Board revealed that the aircraft had suffered damage to the left wing's leading edge slats, ailerons and flaps.