Here's a beautiful and well maintained S2 converted to turbo prop power. Waiting at the Paso Robles airport CDF station for forest fire calls. There were 2 S2Ts for dropping fire retardant and one OV-10 Bronco lead-ship/incident command platform, and a museum at the other end of the main runway. Not a lot of traffic on the actual runway, but plenty to see at both ends!

Grumman originally designed the S2 as an anti-submarine patrol plane that could operate from aircraft carriers. It had enough range and endurance to loiter around at low atltitude watching its surface search radar, Magnetic abnormality detector (MAD) boom and sonarbouys. Sensor operators and their electronics were behind the cockpit. If a sub was found, it could be tracked and possibly identified by acoustic signature. In a shooting war, the S2 could launch homing torpedos, drop depth charges, mines and fire rockets.

Thus the "Ironworks" at Grumman designed a very good solution for fighting forest fires, where rapid transit from water supply to fire and back is vital, load carrying ability at low level, maneuverability and overall resilience'

And beautiful too!