Air Tractor 502 Spray Plane Walk Around

[@doycowzintexas1672]

Dude awesome video ..... gets me stoked just listening to you describe the process

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Thanks!

[@nealparnell5403]

Just found your channel and I'm so stoked. I absolutely love aviation in general but ag aviation specifically. Something I've always dreamed of but because of poor eyesight will never do. You do such a great job of diving into the details. Keep up the great work. Always waiting for a new episode!

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Thanks for the kind words Neal and we appreciate you watching!

[@jeffgerbing1230]

Another channel to follow , you two really are into everything . Just started this one excited to see all the videos

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Jeff GERBING Thanks for watching Jeff. We appreciate the support.

[@sea_turtle_adventures]

Great video! Ironically, the local AG plane is spraying fields next door to us right now. Sitting here watching this and hearing the plane at the same time is pretty darn cool. Love watching those pilots banking the turns overhead.

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Haha that is cool!

[@lincolnjohnson825]

I like how you guys reply to basically every comment. You're one of the few channels that do that. Love your videos!

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Thanks Lincoln we try to catch them all.

[@mikeekim2532]

This was really FUN, thank you. I watched as I fly one in R/C.... Pretty much the A10 Warthog of Agriculture☺!

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Thanks for watching!

[@terrystrong9787]

Great video!!!

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Thank you!!

[@repairfreak]

These videos you make are just too cool, just found your channel. I will likely ask a few questions later. Thanks for teaching us how you guys do this thrilling job! ✌️😎👍

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Glad you found the channel! We’re here if you have any questions.

[@craigswarthout6678]

Loved the explanation of the plane, really informative. I watch planes fly over all the time here in iowa

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Appreciate you watching.

[@chemistryinstruments7156]

Great job with videos, thanks. Makes me wish I could do it.

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Thanks for watching!

[@davidbradford9111]

I love your videos

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Thanks, we appreciate you watching.

[@oseiasroverotto8483]

Hello my friend, I like the yours videos! I’m Brazilian

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Glad to have you thanks for watching.

[@MultiTurbospeed]

Air tractors can dump water to fight fires as well. Also you can pitch the blades to help slow down

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Yeah you bet!

[@andrewlau2100]

How long do you fly before you have to come down to refill your chemicals and refuel?

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Thanks for watching Andrew. I talk about that topic in this video kzbin.info/www/bejne/Z4acmJ2pitalrMk

[@davewestner]

Interesting that there's no AI. Obviously you wouldn't really need it to do your job, but I guess that means the flight is a no go if you have to ferry to another airport and it's IFR. Pretty stoked to work my way thru your channel here. I can't believe the ease in which you talk while you're spraying. Fly safe....pretty sure I'll be hitting you up with more questions as this goes. Quick anecdote.....when I got my commercial ticket 15 years ago, I was looking for work (wound up doing traffic reporting), and I have a good friend whose family runs a big farm down in FL. Asked her if they ever needed a pilot and her response was, "Oh Dave, you don't wanna do that work! Those guys ARE NUTS!" made me laugh and I never pursued it after that. Still kinda wanna do this work. It seems like good honest work.

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Thanks for watching Dave. The aircraft is not certified to fly IFR and as you saw has only basic instruments although some people do upgrade their panels. It is fun, hard, honest work.

[@ben3989]

What sort of transit time to a farm is typical before you would relocate the operation temporarily?

[@AgAviationAdventures]

If you start going beyond 30 miles it can be tough to get much work done. So we like to stay within that range if possible.

[@charlieayers221]

Tyson,man!you make it look so easy how can you fly and talk at the same time without loosing concentration...man you fly like you are driving a car LOL...how many G’s do you pull? Because it Seems like none...man you doing a great job! Nothing like enjoying your work...have you ever tried flying RC?

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Charlie Ayers Thanks Charlie. I definitely can’t do it in every field but there are ones with less obstacles then others. I try to pull as little G’s as possible. There’s just no way you can sit in the aircraft for 15 hours pulling multiple G’s all day. I’ve never tried RC but we have a place about a mile from us where people fly them.

[@SomeTechGuy666]

What are the louvres on the fuselage behind the cab for ?

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Behind that is the air conditioner condenser as well as fans to keep it cool.

[@ckiverson5690]

I am a student pilot and I'm looking into ag pilot industry. I know the hours are long in the summer but do you work 7 days a week all summer long or do you get a day on the weekend once in a while to be with your family? Sounds a great job but your wife may want to have you once in a while on a weekend in the summer. Your awesome thanks for the information you do great

[@AgAviationAdventures]

There will be slow days for sure. For our situation at least (could be different at different operations) we always have to be on call and ready to spray. Our farmers appreciate that we are there, even when we are slow or if the weather is bad. My girlfriend works with me - she does everything on the ground so we are lucky because we have the same schedule. Thanks for watching!

[@MultiTurbospeed]

@@AgAviationAdventures where I used to live air tractors flew over my house every day even at night and it's pretty cool to see them work.

[@AdventureRig]

Sam Turberville Oh that’s very cool.

[@Joseph_Gibson]

What's the cable for between the cockpit and the tail? I've always thought those were for powerline protection.

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Yeah. If you happen to catch a power line it’s suppose to prevent it from ripping the vertical stabilizer off.

[@KevinPaulineNeal]

Great. Nice machine.

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Thanks Kevin.

[@capnpete1154]

Do you have to change nozzles between wet and dry applications?

[@AgAviationAdventures]

I actually take the booms completely off and attach a dry spreader under the aircraft.

[@capnpete1154]

@@AgAviationAdventures That makes more sense. Really enjoy your channel. Thanks.

[@cyvanover1114]

On average, how many flight hours do you get in a typical crop dusting season?

[@AgAviationAdventures]

It's going to depend on where you're located but typical is probably 300-600 hours.

[@sheldongoossen9771]

Do you do any night spraying?

[@AgAviationAdventures]

No

[@sheldongoossen9771]

@@AgAviationAdventures okay. There is a fellow I follow on Instagram and he does some night spraying in Saskatchewan here. It's his own fields tho.

[@AgAviationAdventures]

They do quite a bit in Arizona but not any where I’m at.

[@stellarpod]

Very interesting segment. QUESTION: Do you have an alternate method to pressure up the spray system such that you could energize it while sitting still? I'm thinking that might be happy for ground maintenance issues. As always, thanks much for sharing. Steve

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Yeah for sure. You can hook a hose to it to pressurize the boom if you needed to.

[@billheap7163]

Why do you want to change the pitch off the prop

[@AgAviationAdventures]

You would find it advantageous to change the pitch of the prop depending on the phase of flight (takeoff, landing, cruise).

[@RenKnight347]

In addition to what Tyson from AG Adventure response of being efficient throughout the flight ranges, there are two other reasons changing the propeller pitch can serve as an advantage over a fixed pitch prop. Improved fuel efficiency and reducing the possible strain on the engine. In the cruise phase of flight, increasing the angle-of-attack of the propeller, will be directly proportional to increasing the torque on the engine. And, when there's an increase on engine torque, the engine slows down improving the fuel efficiency. Lastly, an RPM engine setting that is either too high or too low can damage the engine or wear it out prematurely. Like Tyson mentioned, throughout the flight envelope, you'll want to have better control over the life of a powerful, high-performance engine by being able to make prop pitch changes to get more out of the investment.

[@outdoor044]

Does that style engine require less maintenance than a piston engine? Do you have to take breaks mid season for engine maintenance? Do you hire out the maintenance?

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Yes the turbine engine is extremely reliable and does not require much maintenance during the season. At 300 hours I have the fuel nozzles changed. There is a local mechanic at the municipal airport that does the maintenance.

[@SomeTechGuy666]

Does the plane get sucked down if you drop the wheels into the crop ? Do you have a mirror or something so you can see how high the wheels are above the crop ? Do yo always have enough power to carry a full load or do you have to adjust for density altitude ?

[@AgAviationAdventures]

If it’s corn the plane can get sucked into the crop. I’ve thankfully never had it happen. I have to adjust for DA depending on the strip I’m working off of and how long it is.

[@wwilliam50]

The emergency lever opens the Doors to dump the load in case of emergency. Those same doors are used to spread seed. How do you keep from dumping all of the seed in a few seconds?

[@AgAviationAdventures]

The lever has a button on top of it. If I push the button it opens the door completely. If I just push the lever forward without hitting the button it will hit a stop that is adjustable so you can vary the gate opening.

[@snakeplisken2123]

I love watching the crop dusters do the farm behind my house. I’m a bigger fan of airplanes than helicopters but the helicopter crop dusters are more impressive to watch. Why don’t these plane have stall fences or winglets of some kind?

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Us fixed wing folks are pretty impressed watching helicopters too! We do have VGs on the wings and some airplanes have winglets.

[@toadamine]

What does the "restricted" print near the cockpit mean? Also, can the same plane apply both wet and dry loads or no?

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Every aircraft has some type of certification. An ag plane is certified in the "Restricted" category giving it special limitations on what it can and cannot do. Yes the same plane can do both dry and wet. You remove all the booms and pump and can hang a spreader on the bottom.

[@toadamine]

@@AgAviationAdventures thank you!

[@AgAviationAdventures]

@@toadamine You bet thanks for watching.

[@tc794]

I see that the air tractor are colored yellow and blue is there a reason for that color?

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Yellow is just for visibility.

[@tc794]

@@AgAviationAdventures Thanks great channel

[@sixwillwin]

good video. You need to lower your seat. Our other pilots think mine is "gangster style" lol I like to be low. Feels a little safer too Them old huge ITT gauges crack me up. Spray lever=money handle. Nice job

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Thanks for watching Rick.

[@ChristopherCollinsworth]

what kind of chemicals are sprayed on crops?

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Insecticides, fungicides, and herbicides.

[@ChristopherCollinsworth]

@@AgAviationAdventures cool. I have a buddy that does this around Hillsboro Tx.

[@RonFauconniere]

Great channel. I grew up in GA w ag tractors spraying the town for mosquitoes! It’s driving me nuts I’ve seen them on a lot of crop dusters but over your right shoulder in the cockpit shot on the exterior rear of the plane is a round cylinder w a screen on it. What is it? You didn’t really do a true walk around on this video to explain it. I’m also a pilot and considered ag aviation. How about insurance in the ag aviation field? Covered by the company you work for?

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Thanks for watching. That is a vent for fresh air. The company you work for covers the insurance.

[@charlieayers221]

Hello Ag I love watching air tractors at work. I was watching an air tractor one day and he was doing this maneuver, as he pulled up to the top he would turn right and drop his left-wing and come right back down into his Patton...what do you call that move? I fly RC planes and I’ve an air tractor in my fleet and I tried that move and almost lost it but I love watching your videos and how long have you been flying?

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Charlie Ayers Thanks for watching Charlie. Without seeing the person fly I’m not sure what kind of turn he was doing. I’ve been flying for 15 years.

[@blakemcreynolds1456]

What air tractor do you have. I have the Eflite 1.5 meter one. And I perform the maneuver you are talking about in my 1.5 meter air tractor

[@blakemcreynolds1456]

I also have the turbo timber 1.5, p51 1.2 and viper 70mm

[@joetroyner]

The thing that sticks out to me in this video you work sun up to sun down. I feel like pilot fatigue could make things unsafe. What do you do to keep fatigue to a minimum?

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Yeah just put in 15 hours on Saturday. Fatigue is a very real thing. I try to eat right, stay hydrated, and if all else fails take a 15 min nap.

[@allywharton5745]

Like the channel , question please, did you ever fly a piston powered ag plane ?

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Thanks for watching. I spent a season in a radial Thrush as well as a 400 Brave.

[@davidbradford9111]

when you pull up out the field how much speed do you loose

[@AgAviationAdventures]

I'm going about 150mph across the field and when I pull into a turn I'm doing between 75mph and 100mph depending on how loaded I am.

[@davidbradford9111]

so you are loosing altitude as well

[@AgAviationAdventures]

David Bradford Yeah in a turn I’ll climb anywhere from 300’-400’. Just depends on winds and how loaded I am.

[@davidbradford9111]

when you turn to come back to the field and it sounds like your throttling back is that just the constant speed propeller changing pitch. And how often do you move the throttle.

[@AgAviationAdventures]

David Bradford I don’t know if the sound can be attributed to one single thing or if it’s a multitude of factors. I definitely can hear the turbine engine though when it’s going away vs when it’s coming towards me. Same thing in a turn. I personally don’t touch the throttle very often. Some guys will pull it back as the load comes off but for me in this particular aircraft I leave it. I have never had an issue feeling like it’s going too fast or that I need to pull power back.

[@davidbradford9111]

do you have to us a different usb stick for the GPS every job

[@AgAviationAdventures]

No I can use the same usb all summer as long as it does not run out of memory.

[@ziffbuhler6768]

How do you regulate the gallons per acer ?

[@AgAviationAdventures]

I can change the orifice size of the nozzle by spinning the end. I have three different sizes.

[@SomeTechGuy666]

Do you have ADS-B in your plane ?

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Some people do however I personally do not.

[@blakemcreynolds1456]

Question: if you crash in an air tractor how safe is it and what are the survival rates

[@AgAviationAdventures]

It depends on how you crash but it’s a very well built aircraft. I don’t know survival rate stats.

[@blakemcreynolds1456]

@@AgAviationAdventures thank you

[@blakemcreynolds1456]

@@AgAviationAdventures i love air tractors a lot and flying. Thank you

[@jim5148]

Why is the spray boom not as wide as the wing?

[@AgAviationAdventures]

The wing produces vortices off the end and if the boom was as long as the wing the chemical would be caught in the vortices and would drift.

[@CarnivoreCurin]

Does this airplane belong to you or a large company?

[@AgAviationAdventures]

It belongs to a family-owned company. Now we bought our own company and own our own planes.

[@gailroberts8194]

How many gallons per acre?

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Typically 2-5 depending on what the product is and the reason for spraying (insects, fungus, etc) as well as what crop it is.

[@scotabot7826]

How do you feel about the structural integrity of the Air Tractor? (Or Thrush, Agwagon or Brave) Have you ever heard of a spar/wing failure? Do you have any worries of another pilot over stressing the airframe, and are their any guards against that? Thanks for these great videos Tyson!

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Thanks for watching Scott. There are ADs out for a lot of aircraft that pertain to spars. It depends on the aircraft but you need to replace the spars at certain time intervals and they need inspections as well throughout the life of the spar. At annual the airframe is also inspected for fatigue and stress as well as some aircraft having inspections every 100 hours for known failure points. They do this because of known issues however I have not personally seen a wing just fall off an airplane..... I feel safe but I know the maintenance history on what I'm flying.

[@JoshuaAnderson91]

@@AgAviationAdventures Hey speaking of maintenance! I'm getting my A&P license right now and I was wondering what kind of maintenance these planes usually require and if it's possible to get a decent job in the Gen. Av. sector as opposed to commercial?

[@JoshuaAnderson91]

I just had a Tractor fly over my house today (we have some farms nearby in this part of New Jersey) and it piqued my interest, so I just discovered your videos today.

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Joshua Anderson Glad you found us!

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Joshua Anderson They require annuals and lots of operators perform 100hr inspections. I think there are lots of opportunities in GA maintenance for sure.

[@charlieayers221]

Hey Tyson I know you fly the real thing and flying your dream,but you should join us ground pilots down here and try flying RC it’s just as much fun as you are having up there...why do air tractors drop smoke from time to time?? Last summer an air tractor came by our flying field and drop a line of smoke...I guess he was saying he was having fun too.😊😊

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Charlie Ayers You’re right I should go and give it a try. Something new! That’s called a smoker. There is a button inside the cockpit and when you press it oil is injected into the exhaust and burns to create the smoke. We use them so we know which way the wind is blowing. The person would have smoked near you to make sure all of the product was going to its intended location and not drifting towards you.

[@connorlynch5528]

Do you own this airplane?

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Connor Lynch No we work for a company that owns the plane.

[@connorlynch5528]

@@AgAviationAdventures Thankyou!

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Connor Lynch You bet thanks for watching.

[@Rwalt61]

Interesting that I found your channel. You sprayers are amazing pilots. On a side note those Pratt & Whitney PT6 engines are used in a lot of aircraft.

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Yeah they are used in quite a few.

[@jonathanolsen7254]

Modern day barnstormer....Had a chance to do this before I got my A and E....

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Definitely.

[@bysmith240]

Do you own your plane/business?

[@AgAviationAdventures]

No we work for a company that owns the aircraft.

[@andrewpogson1186]

Love your videos... but the plane is actually a Piper Pawnee

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Negative. This is an Air Tractor 502. 😂

[@RenKnight347]

​@@AgAviationAdventures Piper Pawnee!?!!?🙄 The Pipers use Lycoming recips, if I'm not mistaken. The Air Tractors all use some variant of the Pratt and Whitney PT6. That alone would give most folks a clue! These keyboard know-it-alls get more and more brazen at each Moon rising!🤣🤣🤣

[@tonygoldwing7247]

that's Dusty crophopper's Basis

[@AgAviationAdventures]

You bet!

[@stanhauser]

It is not a Walk Around , it is a Seated In .

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Ok then!

[@michaelmckinley4588]

i love you.

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Well thanks!

[@Ruvedo]

Dusty? Is that you? XD

[@AgAviationAdventures]

😀

[@doenjangstew4438]

The cockpit is too small.

[@AgAviationAdventures]

It’s definitely not large.

[@TTomky]

Rudders. Explain

[@AgAviationAdventures]

The rudders are the pedals on the floor and they control the yaw.

[@TTomky]

@@AgAviationAdventures i understand. Please show in flight and talk through

[@TTomky]

Can't find like button. Sorry

[@AgAviationAdventures]

Thanks for watching Trace.

[@kingsalmon5905]

Is there something on the wings to cut a power line or cable if you accidentally hit one?

[@AgAviationAdventures]

There is a company that makes a piece that mounts to the landing gear to cut lines if you happen to catch it with the gear.