below us, we spotted the command helicopter with joel lane. a thousand feet below that is where the chinook flies. lane directs the big chopper to the drop zone. from our perch, we could almost count the trees as we flew over a blackened landscape. then, we saw boats, docks, and houses: south lake tahoe. >> britt coulson: that's south lake tahoe airport right there. and then you got the fire right there. >> whitaker: right behind it. >> britt coulson: so there, you've got all the individual embers coming up. >> whitaker: that's burning heavily. >> britt coulson: yeah. >> whitaker: the chinook sweeps across the flames... >> britt coulson: start drop. i can see the wet rock down here. i mean, we're getting water down on it. >> whitaker: ...drops its water, then heads to the nearest lake to refill. unlike fixed-wing craft that have to return to base, the chinook can refill anywhere. hovering like some prehistoric bird, it sucks up 3,000 gallons in 90 seconds. >> snorkel contract. snorkel's deploying. >> whitaker: this doesn't come cheap. a helitan