International

The 2016 season is coming to a somewhat close for many operators and pilots (end of August) throughout the world. The results are all over the board, but for most - as you will read below, a slight downturn in their season was experienced. This, contrasted with good fungicide runs...

“Simple by Design – Flexible in Application” As an aviation technology company, DynaNav delivers modern and productive solutions to fulfill the current demands of the aerial application industry. The best way to know where to concentrate the technology advancement is by working directly with pilots and operators, as such DynaNav...

Often a farmer will be faced with a decision as to whether to treat their crop by ground application or aerial application. Aerial Application has a number of advantages over ground based application. These include: Advantages: • Timeliness of operation • Zero soil compaction • Zero disease transfer • Zero...

Valencian region (Spain)-based Avialsa T-35 S.L. has participated in over 280 forest fires during this summer season in Valencia region as of mid-July. From fire bases in Siete Aguas, Enguera, Mutxamiel, Castellón, Vistabella and Benagéber, nine Air Tractor AT-802s of which two are Fire Bosses were on-call. "With the heat...

Aero Spray, Inc. of Appleton, MN entered into the aerial fire-fighting world in 1999 with a MN-DNR “call-when-needed” contract for its AT-802A. Owner John Schwenk quickly discovered that the AT-802 was a highly cost effective spray and fire-fighting aircraft that significantly enhanced Aero Spray’s productivity and bottom line. In 2007,...

The status of Greece’s aerial fire-fighting armada is in crisis after the Hellenic Air Force endured its third major CL-215/415 disaster since 2014. On June 26, 2016 at 11:09 GMT, the piston-engine, fire-fighting aircraft of the Hellenic Air Force, the Canadair CL-215, crashed close to the village of Stefani, near...

The Bee Informed Partnership takes an annual survey of commercial and backyard beekeepers in order to track health and survival rates of honey bee colonies. The latest results show that colonies declined 44 percent during the year spanning April 2015 to April 2016. That sounds alarming, and it is in...

Aerial application can be just as effective as ground application, but that characterization does not do aerial application justice. Aerial application has many advantages. We thought it would be a good idea to review those advantages this month in case we need to articulate them to our customers and critics....

The New Zealand Agricultural Aviation Association, in conjunction with the New Zealand Helicopter Association, held its annual conference in Wellington on the North Island June 25-29. One of the conference topics was the Association’s “Down to the Wire” campaign. NZAAA Chairman Alan Beck is championing an initiative to have farm...

During the period from November 1960, I began working with Rural Aviation as an aerial topdressing pilot flying the Cessna 180. It was my first flying job and I had just passed the New Zealand CPL. My parents were very concerned about me entering the NZ aerial topdressing industry due...