Watch: Drone footage of Cairngorms wildfire as 'progress' made in tackling blaze

There has “been welcome” progress in tackling the huge wildfire in the Cairngorms, John Swinney said yesterday, as the UK government said it had offered military support.

Douglas Alexander, the Scottish Secretary, told Neil Gray that specialist resources will be made available upon request, including Chinook helicopters for logistical and heavy-lift capacity and support from UK standby battalions. However, the First Minister said the UK Government’s offer was unnecessary.

Mr Swinney said the Scottish Government had requested aerial support to drop water on the fire but was told that the Ministry of Defence (MoD) did not have such equipment.

After a meeting of the Scottish Government’s Resilience Room (SGORR) on Sunday, Mr Swinney said there had been continued progress in controlling the blaze.

“As our emergency services and partners continue to tackle the wildfires in the Cairngorms, I am pleased to see there has been welcome progress and I thank all again for their continued hard work and collaboration,” he said.

“The Scottish Government requested military assistance, in the form of aerial support to drop water on the fire, from the Ministry of Defence to supplement existing aerial resources that are in place. We have received a formal response advising that the UK Government are not in a position to agree to this request, given that the Ministry of Defence does not possess aerial firefighting assets stationed within the UK. The offer of other resources is welcome but SFRS has confirmed they have the other resources they need.

“Ministers will continue to be updated on the fire and resources and services will remain until the fire is out. As I stated earlier, this wildfire is being treated with the utmost seriousness and necessary resources will be in place until the last flames are out.”

On Sunday afternoon, firefighters said an “intensive operation” is still under way but better weather conditions, including heavy rain and low winds, have slowed the fire and limited its spread. More than 75 firefighters remain at the scene, the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) said.

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Residents of Nethy Bridge who were evacuated on Friday night have been told they can return home. Police Scotland said on Saturday night it was no longer treating the fire as a major incident.

Defence Secretary Wes Streeting said the armed forces are “always ready” to respond to emergencies.

He said: “My thoughts are with those who have been affected by the terrible wildfires in the Cairngorms and I pay tribute to the brave emergency services personnel who have been working tirelessly to tackle the blaze.

“Our armed forces are always ready and able to respond to serious situations and Chinook helicopters can be available to provide heavy-lifting capacity, which may be needed given the landscape, and we have UK standby battalion personnel ready to deploy to provide additional numbers on the ground to help bring the wildfire under control.

“The Ministry of Defence is ready to support in any way we can and we are working closely with teams on the ground.”

Meanwhile, it was announced a Highland games event has been cancelled while the fire continues to burn.

It was announced on Sunday that Abernethy Highland Games would not go ahead because the local community centre is still being used by the emergency services and many of the event’s volunteers have been involved in efforts to stop the fire.

Abernethy Highland Games organisers said with “no end point in sight”, the decision had been made to cancel the August 8 event.

“It is with great sadness and deep regret that given the ongoing wildfire and its response, the Abernethy Highland Games 2026 have today been cancelled,” organisers said in a post on social media.

“The community centre is still in full use by the emergency services, with no end point in sight.

“Many of our volunteers for the Games have been actively involved in fighting the fire over many hours and days.”

Organisers added: “Our thanks to all the firefighters and other emergency service personnel, game keepers, volunteers, machinery operators and everyone else who has been involved over the past 12 days.”

Held annually on the second Saturday of August on the Games Field in the centre of Nethy Bridge, the Abernethy Highland Games are one of the oldest traditional games in Scotland, according to organisers. It features a Chieftain’s Parade and children’s races, as well as traditional competitions such as Highland dancing, piping and drumming, athletics, a road race, tug of war, tossing the caber and other heavy throwing events.