bluechopper Posted May 22, 2010 Report Share Posted May 22, 2010 hello everyone I am hello pilot looking for more information about AG work. According to an ag business operator who has 3 planes he needs to need to do 2000 acres a day at 5 gallon a acre a day to make money need something that goes 160 mph ferry time and be able to do 100 acre loads once in the air. he thinks a helicopter would never bit the planes !! Can a helicopter out work a fixed wing airplane in dry crop dusting runs of 1 to 2 miles long in flat areas ? if so what kind of helicopter would do the work ? is it possible that a helicopter not only would out work the modern ag fixed wing airplanes but also be cheaper to run ? any information would be very help full. messages can also be sent to my e-mail : maurozaros@hotmail.com thank you all 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rick1128 Posted May 22, 2010 Report Share Posted May 22, 2010 While there are many variables involved here, the FW sprayer is generally less expensive than a helicopter to operate. Things like fewer life limited parts, etc. Insurance may be less expensive for the FW, but I don't have any figures to back that up. Helicopter sprayers do have some advantages over FW. They can operate off a nurse truck near the field, which cuts ferry time, you spend more time spraying. Helicopters work better in small, irregular and/or obstacle laden fields than FW. And some farmers prefer a helicopter for spraying, as the rotor wash helps put the chemical on the underside of the plant, which is where the bugs, fungus and the other nasties prefer to hide. hello everyone I am hello pilot looking for more information about AG work. According to an ag business operator who has 3 planes he needs to need to do 2000 acres a day at 5 gallon a acre a day to make money need something that goes 160 mph ferry time and be able to do 100 acre loads once in the air. he thinks a helicopter would never bit the planes !! Can a helicopter out work a fixed wing airplane in dry crop dusting runs of 1 to 2 miles long in flat areas ? if so what kind of helicopter would do the work ? is it possible that a helicopter not only would out work the modern ag fixed wing airplanes but also be cheaper to run ? any information would be very help full. messages can also be sent to my e-mail : maurozaros@hotmail.com thank you all Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluechopper Posted May 22, 2010 Author Report Share Posted May 22, 2010 While there are many variables involved here, the FW sprayer is generally less expensive than a helicopter to operate. Things like fewer life limited parts, etc. Insurance may be less expensive for the FW, but I don't have any figures to back that up. Helicopter sprayers do have some advantages over FW. They can operate off a nurse truck near the field, which cuts ferry time, you spend more time spraying. Helicopters work better in small, irregular and/or obstacle laden fields than FW. And some farmers prefer a helicopter for spraying, as the rotor wash helps put the chemical on the underside of the plant, which is where the bugs, fungus and the other nasties prefer to hide. Thanks for the reply rick1128, the stuff about the rotor wash helping to put the chemical on the underside of the plants is an interesting point to my research. thanks again Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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