The Board of Supervisors on Tuesday directed county administrators to open discussions with state and federal fire agencies about allowing county aircraft to fly at night during a wildfire emergency.

The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection and the U.S. Forest Service, the two agencies responsible for much of the land in rural eastern and northeastern parts of the county, prohibit night flying of firefighting aircraft due to safety concerns.

The supervisors approved a plan last month to lease three firefighting airplanes later this year. Supervisor Pam Slater-Price, who brought the request to the board along with Supervisor Dianne Jacob, said the county's efforts would be hamstrung if the aircraft are not allowed to fly at night over state and federal lands.

"I'm tired of hearing excuses on why it can't be done," Slater-Price said. "The time is now to make it happen."

State officials were in the county Tuesday to speak with officials about talk about fire preparedness, including the possibility of allowing local aircraft to fly at night during an emergency.

Bill Payne, Cal Fire's chief of flying operations, said he spoke Tuesday about night flying with the San Diego County Sheriff's Department. One major hurdle, Payne said, is the county needs to lease or purchase twin-engine aircraft in order to make them safer if one of the engines fails while flying at night.

"We're starting to put together a laundry list of things that would be needed, including equipment, staffing, training and infrastructure," Payne said. "The biggest issue that we have is that we are not going to feel comfortable flying with anything other than a twin engine aircraft."

Officials with the U.S. Forest Service could not be reached for comment Tuesday.

The board approved the request on a 4-0 vote with Supervisor Ron Roberts absent.

The request also asked that administrators explore the possibility of retrofitting two county-owned helicopters to fight fires at night.

In 2003, fire agencies were criticized for not allowing aircraft to fly at night to attack the deadly Cedar fire when it began shortly before nightfall on Oct. 25. The 2003 wildfires, including the Cedar fire, burned more than 376,000 acres, destroyed more than 2,200 homes and killed 14 people.

The use of aircraft to fight fires also was hotly debated in the wake of the October 2007 wildfires, which burned more than 360,000 acres and destroyed more than 1,600 structures in the county. Politicians and others criticized state fire officials for not adequately planning for the aerial attack and failing to ask for timely help.

State fire officials have said they are studying whether it's safe for pilots to fly firefighting missions after dark. Even with advanced night-vision technology, pilots who are usually called in from other parts of the state must contend with unfamiliar territory along with high winds and wildfires.

Jacob said she recognized that there were "inherent risks" involved in flying in the dark, but added that it can be done safely.

"We should be able to fight fires day or night if the proper training and equipment is available and it is safe," she said.

Augie Ghio, chief of the San Miguel Fire District and head of the San Diego County Fire Chiefs Association, praised the board's decision. The supervisors also requested that county administrators work with the association to implement an agreement among local agencies to fly aircraft at night during a wildfire emergency.

"We're really glad to see the supervisors taking this leadership step to make it happen," Ghio said.

Contact staff writer Edward Sifuentes at (760) 740-3511 or esifuentes@nctimes.com.