Not the 7th Cavalry or the US Marines, but a good help:-

US fire chiefs set to fly to Australia

US President Barack Obama has phoned Prime Minister Kevin Rudd to offer his condolences over bushfires that have left at least 173 dead and offer US help in fighting the blazes.

"The president offered his prayers to the people of Australia and his condolences to the victims. The president asked if the US could provide assistance to the government and people of Australia to assist with the fire,'' said White House spokesman Robert Gibbs.

The call came as a contingent of senior US fire personnel prepared to fly to Australia to help battle the killer bushfires. About 35 American firefighting operation chiefs, aviation managers, planning section chiefs and specialists in land rehabilitation are waiting for final orders to help bolster the effort to control the blazes.

"Australia and New Zealand have been wonderful neighbours and provided help in our time of need and we are happy to return that help,'' US National Interagency Fire Centre spokesman Don Smurthwaite told AAP.

Australia, New Zealand and US firefighting agencies have a close working relationship and have participated in exchange programs in recent years. A team of 44 Australian and New Zealand fire personnel were stationed in northern California last August to help quell fires that ravaged the region.

In recent days Australian and US government officials held informal discussions about calling on American fire personnel.

A formal request for assistance is believed to be imminent. It is expected once the formal request is issued it will take about 48 hours to have the US contingent on the ground in Australia.

The deployment will not include firefighters to be used on the fire fronts. "The positions will be mostly leadership and supervisory in nature,'' Smurthwaite said.

"We won't be sending firefighters at this point.''