What Does the Loadsite Look Like at an Ag Aviation Operation?
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- Опубликовано: 3 окт 2024
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A quick tour of the loadsite that we work out of in Minnesota. They are all different but simplicity is key. We like to stay organized and keep things clean. Would love to answer any questions you may have about the ground operations of an ag aviation operation.
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#agaviationadventures #cropdusting #agaviation
OMG ,you are the first ever spray hottie on RUclips!!! Man you know what your Doing and you are aFreaking natural at making videos!! You guys keep up the good work and keep bringing the videos. Ps you don’t want to see what my ground crew looks like!😢😢
Haha thanks for watching James!
Thanks for sharing your video. I enjoyed watching. Take care and God Bless.
Thanks Walt!
I'm catching up on your videos. The company I worked for in the OK Panhandle, in the '60s, didn't have a central loading location. We had a chem/fuel truck and 500-gal water truck. We would drive to a more-or-less central location, a section-line road, and set up there. The pilot(s) would land on the dirt road and taxi to us for loading. Saved fuel and time. There weren't that many 'dusters' at the time and we covered much of the Panhandle and some of KS and TX. Being a mobile operation, we were able to move as far south as Plainview TX to spray, though that was rare and for a specific insect.
Wow, that is really cool! Wish we could still do things like that today.
@@AgAviationAdventures Is it illegal now? If so, per the FAA or state law?
@@MaxEPR Well it depends on where you are. You need authorization from the county. I talked to the FAA about it last month and they said they don't really mind. But the county is the one who would be up in arms about it.
Well, that is an awesome infrastructure. I really appreciatte that you guys took the time to explain the step-by-step logistics. Keep up the great work!
Thanks Juan!
Nice set up! Great Videos! Thanks
Thanks for watching John!
Mixing and loading operations are much cleaner now compared to what was common 30 - 35 years ago when I spent 5 seasons on "the dock" in high school and right after. There were nicknames for everybody and everything. We called load preparation "mixing foo foo". Everything came in cans, drums, jugs, and bags. Now it seems common to pump from large totes rather then sticking a bung in a 55 gallon drums and draining into 5 gallon buckets. A lot of fun memories including every sunrise of the summer working the dock. Best of all, I got to mix nasty chemicals that are probably now or should be illegal like Parathion (joking of course). Also, don't forget...never slam the valves! it will blow the seals on the pumps. I heard that a number of times.
Sounds like you have some great memories!
Just started my first day as a member of ground crew. I'm telling you guys this job is worth the try!
That’s great!
How did it go? I’m thinking about doing it next year!
@@Joseph0862 I completed the entire season, it's a lot of fun. Prepare for getting up before sun up and going to bed after Sundown. Very long work days, but it goes quick! Definitely try it out!
@@bestmandodad3850 That’s awesome! Im definitely looking forward to doing it next year! Thank you for answering so quickly!
@@Joseph0862 You are very welcome!
Very nice setup! You have it right.
Thanks for watching Gregg.
Im going to be working at a crop dusting service soon with zero experience. God bless your channel!
Glad you find it helpful!
Thank you for putting out these videos!!!
Thanks for watching!
Damn..Nice set-up
Thanks!
What a nice video
Thank you for watching.
been working on my private and then on to my commercial plus a few ratings, but flew into a different airport today and saw the big crop dusters and here I am now wanting to crop dust.
It’s a fun profession for sure.
Fantastic video. Please keep the content coming!!!!
Thanks for watching!
I'm just setting up a system for this spring. You have some great ideas here Many thanks!
Awesome! Glad to help!
That was very cool, keep up the good work...
Thanks!
It seems like your job may not be very glamorous like flying, but seems very important.
Hers is definitely important. She won’t admit it but she keeps the whole thing running.
Exelent information 😁👍
Thanks Carlos!
Good job 👍 I’m glad we work in litres and millilitres over here. It’s so much easier 🦘
I bet!
Great video!
Thanks terry!
Oh wow, I love that mix tank. When I was in high school I started dairying with a tiny herd of 12 cows. That's the same size milk tank I bought from an old retired dairyman. Yeah I'm showing my age, you could never dairy today with only 12 cows.
Haha true. Times have changed.
Yes, thank you for this vid!
Thanks for watching Joel!
Hi ! Where Can I get the Dry Lock ? ..
- all these videos , all channel , it’s what we need as Cropduster . They are so good ! .. both of you , Thanks for showing our profession like you do! 🇦🇷
Appreciate the kind words! We get the dry locks from Sky Tractor in North Dakota.
@@AgAviationAdventures Thanks !
May be a dumb question but gotta ask 😂 what is the water used for ? Is it mixed with the chemical ?
Yes. The airplane holds 500 gallons. Of that roughly 480 gallons is water. The rest is a mix of surfactants and chemical.
@@AgAviationAdventures does that ratio vary between using different fungicides/insecticides and different herbicides
Yeah. Just depends on what the rate is for what’s being sprayed. Some thing could be 4 oz to the acre and others 30 oz.
What kind of plane is the 100LL for?
Any piston or radial. It’s been a few years since we’ve had anything come through that’s required it.
Thanks for the interesting videos. What's the process when you switch between different chemicals? I expect it partially depends on the previous and new chemicals being used. Some combinations may have (1) acceptable compatibility and (2) others probably require a thorough purge of previous chemical from the aircraft's system. For situations like (2), where how & where do you dispose of the grey/"contaminated" water used to rinse the aircraft's reservoir/plumbing and the ground system with the cones and lines? I also expect you periodically need to rinse & clean both the aircraft's plumbing and the ground station both due to prolonged use and when they won't be used for a lengthy period of time, such as multiple days of bad weather.
You are right! There is a video about cleaning out. But the cones and hoses and rinsed into the hopper. The hopper is sprayed down with ammonia that neutralizes chemical. All of this is sprayed on the last field that was meant for the chemical that is being cleaned out (if that makes sense).
@@AgAviationAdventures That does make sense. Thanks for taking the time to read and reply to so many comments. You guys do a great job!
Hi there..who determines how much chemical to add per gallon of water? the pilot? you? just curious as to who determines that part of the process. Thanks for doing the videos.
Thanks for watching Kevin. It is usually an agronomist who is making the recommendation as to what chemical and how much.
...my Father in Law lived a short life due to exposure to Ag Chemicals...54 years old...Multiple Myeloma...
...good luck...
Yikes! What was his job?
@@AgAviationAdventures
...farmhand...
...every year he and his boss (the farm owner) would flag on the ground for aerial pesticide application...possibly DDT...
...thirty years later...both died of Multiple Myeloma within months of each other...
...odds at the time of getting MM were 25,000 to 1 ...
...both of them getting it at the same time made it pretty clear what happened...
That’s unfortunate.
@@AgAviationAdventures
...if it will kill an insect...
...it will kill you...
...be careful...
This is awesome, great video! Does the operation own the land the loadsite is on or do they rent it from a farmer or airport? When loading the plane from a semi do airports allow you to load from there or do you have to be on a private landing strip? Thanks!
This is a private strip owned by the company. When we load out of semis we are at municipal airports.
Love your videos, very informative. I have a question hoping you or someone on here can help me with. My 402 uses more fuel out of the left tank then on the right. All the lines are open and free. So to transfer fuel in flight from right to left. Do I push rudder to trail the left tank or the right? Reason I ask, is because sometimes my breather on the right tank will flow over in flight and if I push it ahead it will do more if I trail it behind it stops instantly.
You can swing the ball towards the tank you want fuel in, if that makes sense. So if you need fuel in the left tank push the right rudder. But to fix the problem stick a screwdriver into the vent tube and bend it so it is either getting more air into it or less.
Excellent thank you. I will give it try
I was wondering what would be the smallest amount of acreage that you would spray? What radius from your load facility do you stay with in?
Really depends. I’ve gone 80 miles away and sprayed 4 acre pieces. Watch the video on the typical length oh a load to get more insight.
Cally mentioned the people you work for. Who is that? Is your operation one of many?
We work for a company and they have a handful of airplanes.
You guys don't have to load the plane on a containment system in MN on a private runway I'm guessing?
No, just the load site itself has to have containment not the pad that the plane sits on.
I owned a lawn spraying for over 30 years. My fill area was not as nice. How many gallons of product can you carry and what rate do you spray? I guess a lot of crops are genetically altered so you can use glyphosate for a non selective weed control?
I can carry 500 gallons and we usually spray 2-5 gallons per acre. Check out the video on GMO crops. We have soybeans, corn, and sugar beets that can be sprayed with glyphosate.
@@AgAviationAdventures 500 gallons at about 9 pounds per gallon, WoW, I did not realize you had that capacity. It is an incredible job you have but like most things can be boring also, I assume. I graduated from Embry Riddle but didn’t like sitting behind a desk (I worked for Sikorsky Aircraft out of college) so I started my lawn spraying company. I will always love aviation. I still look up when I hear and interesting sound. Good luck stay safe.
Spencer
You are beautiful and very well spoken. I hope all that shit doesnt give you cancer
She’s the best!! 😍
Nice reuse of a milk tank
Right!
@@AgAviationAdventures they also make great, very well insulated smokers. Have one built out of a 400 and 600 gallon muller tank.
Love your content.
Oh I bet! We appreciate you being here.
ithats a little to easy for our operation, we still do 50% of it the hard way!(usually because something is broke!)
Haha we have other locations like that!
One question I have are u single cally lol.
Haha she’s taken!
Duh anyone been an lived around airplanes knows this.
Consider yourself lucky. There are a lot of people in the world who have never seen a tractor, let alone a load site or ag plane. Thanks for watching! Appreciate the support.