Two Greek CL-415 firefighting aircraft deployed to Spain under the European Union Civil Protection Mechanism (UCPM) took part on Sunday (July 26) in operations to contain major wildfires burning in the Burgohondo area, about 115 km (71 miles) west of Madrid, Greece's Ministry of Climate Crisis and Civil Protection said.

The aircraft took off on Sunday morning from Torrejón Air Base near Madrid and conducted firefighting operations in the Burgohondo area throughout the day, the ministry said.

Under the European Union's civil protection mechanism, Greece and Italy have each sent two Canadair firefighting aircraft to Spain, while Portugal has deployed more than 100 military personnel along with equipment.

Two more planes will arrive "as soon as possible" from Turkey, the Spanish interior ministry said on X.

Sanchez said his government would on Tuesday declare a civil protection emergency for the central provinces plagued by the wildfires, unlocking additional recovery funding.

More than 150,000 hectares have burned across Spain since January, he said, six times the area destroyed during the same period last year.

While wildfires have long been a feature of Spain's summers, Sanchez said their growing scale and intensity, fuelled by increasingly extreme weather, required policies grounded in climate science.

DESCRIPCIÓN DE IMÁGENES

1. VIEW THROUGH COCKPIT OF ONE CANADAIR FIREFIGHTING PLANE AS ANOTHER CANADAIR FLIES AHEAD

2. PILOTS IN COCKPIT AS AIRCRAFT APPROACHES WILDFIRE

3. VARIOUS VIEWS FROM COCKPIT AS AIRCRAFT APPROACHES HEAVY WILDFIRE SMOKE, ANOTHER CANADAIR DUMPING WATER AHEAD

4. SMOKE RISING FROM FOREST

BURGOHONDO, SPAIN (JULY 26, 2026) (GREEK MINISTRY OF CLIMATE CRISIS AND CIVIL PROTECTION HANDOUT - Access All)

5. CANADAIR FIREFIGHTING AIRCRAFT TAKING WATER FROM LAKE AND TAKING OFF

IN AIR ABOVE BURGOHONDO, SPAIN (JULY 26, 2026) (GREEK MINISTRY OF CLIMATE CRISIS AND CIVIL PROTECTION HANDOUT - Access All)

6. AIRCRAFT FLYING TOWARDS LARGE FOREST FIRE