I talked to Z to make sure it was OK to post this...

My grandfather was a crop duster for 28 years in the 1960's and early 70's... He died when I was 6.
Based on this, my daughter ( McKenna ) decided to do a high school paper on Agricultural Aviation and would like some help from the community.
Here are her questions...

• What is your history in agricultural aviation? (Where, around what time, what you sprayed for...)

• What kind of aircraft did/are you use(ing)?

• What equipment did/are you use(ing)? (Besides the plane.)

• What guidelines/laws where/are in place where you worked/are working?

• What are your current views on aerial applications?

• Where do you think the future of agricultural aviation is heading?

• How do you feel about young people in agricultural aviation related careers.

Would appreciate the feed back...
Thanks
Brian.

Check out this book----Low and Slow by Mabry Anderson. My Dad gave it to me since he was a crop duster. The very first dusting happened in Tallulah LA with the Army dumping dust for Catalpa worms I think. One guy flying and one pouring dust into a tube that went out the bottom. That guy was totally white with dust but that was the beginning according to the book.

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1 ... I_Anderson

History: Used Veteran educational benefits for Ag course at Slaton Flying Service in Slaton, Texas in 1979. Sprayed or taught Ag until 2006.

Mostly Pawnee and CallAir, but also Stearman and Air Tractor.

Used both spray booms and spreader on the airplanes, but also did ground spraying with two John Deer highcycles one season. The plane did fine and I lost money with the tractors because I couldn't get enough production in the Mesilla Valley. The growers made my drivers stop at the same wind speed as they stopped me in the airplane. I would spray 200 acres in the same time they would spray 20 acres.

Laws: The main regulation of the aerial application industry is through state departments of agriculture. Commercial applicators (ground and/or air) must be licensed through the state and carry drift liability insurance.

Amazingly this is one industry regulated little by the federal government. Restricted use chemicals are highly regulated, but neither the operator or pilot is scrutinized so much once they have the same commercial license as any pilot flying for hire. The operator is regulated through Federal Air Regulations Part 137, but that is a very few cursory pages covering mostly paperwork. The pilot needs only the standard commercial pilot certificate and a checkout by the chief pilot. Ag school, while expensive, is popular because so little contact flying is taught in the normal pilot certification process.

Current views: Less than 2percent of us still own or operate farms. Yet this huge industry accounts for the most technological advances, save military, and continues to feed an ever growing world population. Save the people. Most of you are too young to remember "save the whales." Anyway , this cannot be done without aerial application. Farms are just too big and there are too many acres to treat. Agriculture will have a future so long as people survive. It is a growth industry. Don't go out and buy forty acres, however! Go to a good land grant college and get an Ag degree.

Hey Brian. Sounds like a fun project.
I grew up on a farm and we had a few different planes. Started with an Ag Cat, then a 600 Thrush, and wrapped up with a C188. In the end, we just weren't as efficient as the ground sprayers.
My current view, on a dry year, the ground machines can just cover so much ground that a plane can't keep up. Running the numbers, the cost of a plane about breaks even with the crop that gets run down by the tires. We can also put just about anyone on a ground machine. So for us it doesn't pay to spray by air.
That said, hopefully we continue to see spray planes! Some of the smaller farmers that can't afford their own machines like to get planes. And on wet years or if we ever get a run of Bertha army worms in the canola, planes will be priceless!
Probably more then you wanted, but hope not too much extra.

David

Sent from my SM-G870W using Tapatalk

Interesting topic. Speaking as a farmer, not an aerial applicator I can give you some information from my perspective. Our local applicator is a second generation in the business. He owns the business as well as does some of the applications. He has three older Grumman Ag-Cats with 600 Hp Pratt and Whitney radials on them. He is one of the most honest and hard working people I know. I think there are large differences in the business depending on the region where they operate. Our area is mostly small fields(80 acres or less) gradually converting from row crops and forage to orchards. We just went through a five year drought(central California) followed by a near record year of rainfall. During the drought hardly anyone was using the airplanes, followed by the rain where they were going from dawn to dusk seven days a week for maybe a six week period protecting the almond blossoms from fungus. Our industry couldn't survive without them. Being so close to the Bay Area our population is growing rapidly so there are a lot of fields he just won't fly. People have bought little parcels to live the country life, but call the ag. commissioner at the sound of a radial engine. His son just graduated from college but won't be going into the family business.

The world of agriculture has changed.-- everyone now wants "organic".

For example, the dreaded GMO aka "genetically modified organism"--
apparently this now applies to hybrids as well as test tube babies.
I guess all those advances back in the day with hybrid plants & animals which increased meat / crop yield weren't so good after all.

I remember Monsanto having a big display ("helping feed the world" or some such) at Disneyland back in the 1960's--
now I guess they're probably right up their with Hitler for their crimes against humanity.

Check with Rob. Articulate and a nice guy. NAAA would be another good resource.

CenterHillAg as well