International

“How does a man with no money, borrow money to go to flight school?” That was the question that Brandt Bottoms posed to a Dumas, Arkansas businessman in 2007 - the question was answered with a loan on a handshake to send the 19-year-old aspiring ag pilot to Flying Tigers...

ORAN, ARGENTINA — It is quite a distance to travel in Argentina from Bahia Blanca north to Oran; it is best if traveled by air line. Even so, it took all day, of course the late departure due to fog in Bahia Blanca was the main reason. With an overnight...

What am I doing here? That is a question I have asked myself more than once in my aviation career. Usually that question arises when complicated situations appear or involve difficulties. I recently asked myself that question while I was in the presence of a group of teenagers. On that...

The next aerial application season, which traditionally starts in March, may be in jeopardy. Problems with the provision of aerial application services, including crop dusting, derive from legal collisions in the industry’s norms and regulations. Ways to avoid the possible industry crisis have been discussed by experts at an online...

“Do you miss it at all?” It was the last question posed during a recent interview with retired owner/operator Ken Kane of Ken Kane Aerial Ltd., one of the largest and most respected ag aviation businesses in North America. For Ken, the answer was straightforward: “Yes I do. I miss...

Profit and profitability are two key performance indicators that you need to master to understand your company’s financial health. Many entrepreneurs think that both are synonymous, but there are essential differences that change the perspective of finances. When the two concepts are mixed, understanding your company’s results is masked (for...

Agricultural pilot Christophe Druart worked on the UN mission to combat locusts in Ethiopia. His story was highlighted this Friday in the French newspaper L'Union. Originally from the Ardennes region in northwest France (bordering Belgium and Luxembourg), Druart joined the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) team...

Turkey's Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry has released this month, legislation on the use of drones to treat crops in the country. The regulation was published January 4th and establishes that operators need to have a special license for operations in crops. The document also specifies fines for possible violations and also determines...

Nearly three decades on from breaking his back when his helicopter crashed into wires on a farm, Taranaki pilot Alan Beck still wakes up in sweats, screaming. From then on, he made it his mission to raise awareness about the dangers of wires, such as electric fences or old TV...

The Argentine Federation of Agroaereal Chambers (Fearca) and the provincial government of Santa Fé signed an agreement last week in Brazil to use agricultural aviation aircraft in firefighting operations. On Wednesday, December 9th, 2020, the long-awaited signing took place during a day spent exchanging information between all parties involved in...