Fire command vehicle

A fire command vehicle, also called a fire chief car, battalion chief vehicle, or fly car, is a vehicle used by a senior officer of a fire department to respond to firefighting incidents.^{[1][2][3][4][5]} Its markings typically indicate the rank of the senior officer.^[6]

A Ford Excursion fire command vehicle used by the New York City Fire Department

In the 19th century, fire chief vehicles were horse-drawn, and known as a chief's buggy.^[7][8] With the advent and rise of the automobile, most fire departments retired their chief's buggies for automobiles with proper markings.^[9][10][11]

Mercedes-Benz G-Class fire command vehicle

In the United States, fire command vehicles are similar to police cars, and are equipped with emergency lighting and emergency vehicle equipment.^[12] Many fire departments use modified SUVs or pickup trucks as their command vehicles.^[13]

In the United Kingdom, the fire car is usually unmarked and personally owned by a station manager. The car has emergency lighting and equipment installed.

See also

• Fire engine
• Nontransporting EMS vehicle
• Glossary of firefighting

References

1. Thomas Ryder (1 April 1987). The Carriage Journal: Vol 24 No 4 Spring 1987. Carriage Assoc. of America. pp. 199–. GGKEY:NYJ9EPN3WZF.
2. Avis A. Townsend (30 November 2005). Albion. Arcadia Publishing. pp. 35–. ISBN 978-1-4396-1652-9.
3. Jonathan V. Levin (4 October 2017). Where Have All the Horses Gone?: How Advancing Technology Swept American Horses from the Road, the Farm, the Range and the Battlefield. McFarland. pp. 101–. ISBN 978-1-4766-6713-3.
4. Frank E. Wrenick; Elaine V. Wrenick (23 August 2016). Automobile Manufacturers of Cleveland and Ohio, 1864-1942. McFarland. pp. 145–. ISBN 978-0-7864-7535-3.
5. National Fire Data Center; Federal Emergency Management Agency; U. S. Fire Administration (14 March 2013). Firefighter Fatalities in the United States in 1999. FEMA. pp. 1–. GGKEY:ZHXWBS5S3KW.
6. David Traiforos; Arn Nowicki (25 January 2016). Detroit Fire Department. Arcadia Publishing. pp. 30–. ISBN 978-1-4396-5547-4.
7. Randy W. Baumgardner (February 2005). Oakland Fire Department: 1869-2004. Turner Publishing Company. pp. 20–. ISBN 978-1-56311-928-6.
8. Walter Mahan Jackson (1954). The Story of Selma. Superintendent of Schools (The Birmingham printing Company). pp. 454–.
9. Hearst Magazines (July 1907). Popular Mechanics. Hearst Magazines. pp. 755–. ISSN 0032-4558.
10. Geoffrey Hunter (2005). Oakland Fire Department. Arcadia Publishing. pp. 29–. ISBN 978-0-7385-2968-4.
11. Fred Thirkell; Bob Scullion (1996). Postcards from the Past: Edwardian Images of Greater Vancouver and the Fraser Valley. Heritage House Publishing Co. pp. 39–. ISBN 978-1-895811-23-0.
12. New York (State). Legislature (1957). Legislative Document. J.B. Lyon Company.
13. Fire Engineering. Technical Pub. 1993.