Rising wildfires spur comeback for Canadian water bomber

The Canadair water bomber revolutionized the fight against wildfires after it debuted in the skies decades ago.

Then demand waned and production stopped, but with major blazes intensifying globally, the water-scooping marvel is making a comeback.

At a production site in Calgary, in western Canada, workers building a next-generation version of the aircraft are busy trying to keep up with orders, which have poured in from Europe, as well as across Canada.

The amphibious plane hit the market in the late 1960s. It was the first aircraft specifically designed to scoop up and dump water on flames -- a departure from other planes that had been modified for that purpose.

Through the latter half of the 20th century, it was a pillar of firefighting efforts in many countries.

With about 160 of t