Nick Rockel
Report on [Small] Business Published on Friday, Sep. 22, 2006 2:29PM EDT Last updated on Monday, Apr. 06, 2009 11:33PM EDT
"When we arrive at a field, we do an aerial reconnaissance to make sure we know where the fixed obstacles are, and we do that at a safe height. But once we start spraying, the trick is to keep the exact details square in your head."
—Jon Bagley owner/pilot, Manitoba-based Westman Aerial Spraying
Commonly known as crop dusting, aerial application is a test of nerves and skill. Flying their aircraft at 200 kilometres an hour, pilots buzz two metres above the ground, precision-spraying 2,200-litre pesticide payloads on crops below. Constant retraining keeps casualty rates low—but there's room for improvement. Crop-dusting accidents made up 4.5% of all Canadian aviation mishaps between 1994 and 2003.
› The biggest hazards are trees, buildings and power lines. In Australia, between 1994 and 2004, 75 of 117 wire-strike accidents involved crop dusters. Pilots also have to watch out for temperature inversions, which can leave spray hanging in the air and hamper visibility.
› With proper handling, pilots' exposure to pesticides is low. But a 23-year U.S. government study of nearly 10,000 crop dusters found they had a significantly elevated risk of pancreatic cancer and leukemia. Hearing loss is another hazard: In some planes, cockpit noise can reach nearly 120 decibels.
› Over the past two years, at least three Manitoba dusters have faced death from below. In July, 2005, Josh Hiebert landed his plane safely after it took a hit from a high-powered rifle. Another aircraft narrowly missed colliding with a 16-inch wrench hurled by an angry resident. And one crop-dusting company was warned its plane would be shot down if it didn't vamoose.
Quick Hits
300
Number of agricultural aircraft in Canada
8 and 147
Deaths and accidents, respectively, involving Canadian crop-dusting aircraft between 1994 and 2003
100 to 200
Metres a crop-dusting plane dives on a spraying run
22,000
Litres of herbicide a plane can drop on a typical 10-run day
440
Hectares of crops covered on a typical 10-day run
1.4 million
Number of grasshoppers per hectare in a severely infested field
1
Number of provinces where crop dusting is banned (PEI, as of April 1, due to health concerns)
$1 million
Cost of a new Air Tractor 502B turbine aerial-application plane
$1.31 billion
2003 sales of pesticides by members of trade-association CropLife Canada
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