Crop Dusting - NIGHT

Since the subject of night flying came up, I thought I'd toss out a
little about night spraying with helicopters and airplanes. I've done
both and prefer the helicopter. Both are OK when properly equipped but
the airplanes move faster and take more time to cover a given field
with their long turnarounds. Still, they can carry more but also have
long ferry times between loads compared to helicopters that load on the
edge of the target field.
I've had a couple of engine failures at night while spraying and was
able to get down both times safely only because I was "cocked and
locked" for it. When you are well within the "curve" at 3' agl and
doing 70-80 IAS, you don't have a whole lot of time to figure out what
to do or where you're gonna go, to dump the load or keep it, or handle
any other emergencies that may be occuring at the same time.
I got into some IMC one night while doing frost control and when I
regained ground contact I was in about a 20deg bank going backwards! I
had already started the pull up/turnaround when I hit the rapidly
developing fog bank. I tried to maintain the controlled turn and
descent back to the spray run line. I really suspect the only reason I
got away with it at all was over 1200 hours of actual IFR in my log.
Had an electrical failure one night as I was approaching some high
power lines and that really got my attention! I shut off the spray and
made as hard a climb as I could with a turn to parallel the lines. Got
it around OK and back to my loading truck. My loader heard me coming,
saw no lights, surmised I had lost my electrical and turned on every
available light to help me get it back on the ground. No big deal but
it was anxious until I knew I was clear of the powerlines!
Great fun that crop dusting and probably why I'm still at it going into
my 38th year of flying in the lowest reaches of the airspace system.
Ol S&B

wrote:

My loader heard me coming,
saw no lights, surmised I had lost my electrical and turned on every
available light to help me get it back on the ground. No big deal but
it was anxious until I knew I was clear of the powerlines!

Interesting post.

Sure sounds like a much difference experience than flying over a city
at night on a clear night.

How does your night vision hold up when your low and slow over a
farmers field and then you see a light on the ground.... from any
source.

Have you ever found yourself temporarily blinded by the light.

No problems. When you have the spray lights on its not much different
than driving your car with the high beams on. Speeds are different and
you fly close to ground objects but you also drive at opposing traffic
with closing speeds of 120-140 mph and no more than a few feet
seperating you from the oncomng traffic!
It is when the unusual happens that you have to be keenly alert and
ready. Bird strikes were the biggest problems.
Ol Shy & Bashful

That was a neat post. I got forearm lock up in both arms just reading it.
I guess I would rather be down there than at 800 ft into a black night
hoping that I didn't have to do an auto down into what ever was down there.
At least there is a relatively flat field. But damn the power lines. I
think that it is time to go under ground with all of those things.

--
Stuart Fields
Experimental Helo magazine
P. O. Box 1585
Inyokern, CA 93527
(760) 377-4478
(760) 408-9747 general and layout cell
(760) 608-1299 technical and advertising cell

www.vkss.com
www.experimentalhelo.com


wrote in message
oups.com...
Since the subject of night flying came up, I thought I'd toss out a
little about night spraying with helicopters and airplanes. I've done
both and prefer the helicopter. Both are OK when properly equipped but
the airplanes move faster and take more time to cover a given field
with their long turnarounds. Still, they can carry more but also have
long ferry times between loads compared to helicopters that load on the
edge of the target field.
I've had a couple of engine failures at night while spraying and was
able to get down both times safely only because I was "cocked and
locked" for it. When you are well within the "curve" at 3' agl and
doing 70-80 IAS, you don't have a whole lot of time to figure out what
to do or where you're gonna go, to dump the load or keep it, or handle
any other emergencies that may be occuring at the same time.
I got into some IMC one night while doing frost control and when I
regained ground contact I was in about a 20deg bank going backwards! I
had already started the pull up/turnaround when I hit the rapidly
developing fog bank. I tried to maintain the controlled turn and
descent back to the spray run line. I really suspect the only reason I
got away with it at all was over 1200 hours of actual IFR in my log.
Had an electrical failure one night as I was approaching some high
power lines and that really got my attention! I shut off the spray and
made as hard a climb as I could with a turn to parallel the lines. Got
it around OK and back to my loading truck. My loader heard me coming,
saw no lights, surmised I had lost my electrical and turned on every
available light to help me get it back on the ground. No big deal but
it was anxious until I knew I was clear of the powerlines!
Great fun that crop dusting and probably why I'm still at it going into
my 38th year of flying in the lowest reaches of the airspace system.
Ol S&B