Crop Dusting

[DO328FLYER]

Any Ag pilots out there??? I am thinking about getting back into it, and am wondering hhow the business is these days. Regional flying is not doing it for me anymore. Thanks for any replies.

 

[061984]

I used to spray in the upper midwest. Ag-pilots up here are a 911 service any more. They are the absolute last option. If you are willing to follow the work I think you could stay busy. I'm also at a regional now. Although it has it's share of problems, I would much rather be where I'm at as opposed to out playing with the wires, towers, and trees.

 

[Shamus]

I have a ton of time in Ag Cats, Ag Huskies, and Pawnees but all towing, not dusting, I think it would be a ton of fun to do. Plus you can go make six figures and get shot at in Columbia. lol.

 

[Chicken Taco]

Dammit! I thought this was going to be a thread about what you do to the pax on the way to the lav

..CT

 

[avbug]

The ag industry has been depressed for some time now. Chemigation is the in thing. You indicated that you're thinking of getting back into ag, which suggests you've sprayed before. If you already have spray experience then the insurance roadblocks shouldn't be an issue...you know the drill. Visit ever ag operator with a hand out until someone picks you up. As always.

 

[UnAnswerd]

Christ, things must be worse than I thought. You want to leave an airline job to spray crops in small little airplane???

 

[Photoflight]

I wish I could stay in "small" airplanes my whole career. Who wants to ride along in some jet all day.

 

[Ill Mitch]

The ag industry has been depressed for some time now. Chemigation is the in thing. You indicated that you're thinking of getting back into ag, which suggests you've sprayed before. If you already have spray experience then the insurance roadblocks shouldn't be an issue...you know the drill. Visit ever ag operator with a hand out until someone picks you up. As always.

It is a sad state.
I turned down a job a couple years ago that would have brought me back into it.
Kinda glad I did, as the airplanes pretty much sat all season. It is something I would love to do again, but man...it is more unstable than the airlines. But I don't want to do that either (except for freight), so I guess I am good.

 

[DO328FLYER]

Airlines, especially regionals, are not the end all be all. If you like to wear polyester, and still make $26k after 5 years at the company then go for it. The truthis it does not take much of a pilot to fly a glass cockpit airplane. Frankly, it is pretty boring going to the same cities over & over. I think I am heading back to a flying job that involved actually flying the airplane. I always swore that when I no longer looked forward to going to work it would be time to move on. I love flying way to much to put myself in a job that I dread going to. The last thing I want to be is a miserable old captain who wishes he had changed gears years ago.....

 

[Photoflight]

I wanna go!

 

[UnAnswerd]

Airlines, especially regionals, are not the end all be all. If you like to wear polyester, and still make $26k after 5 years at the company then go for it.

26K after 5 years??? Wouldn't you be better off at WalMart??? I honestly do not understand why pilots have to spend TWICE the amount of money on their education than does a college graduate, only to end up earning about as much as a WalMart shelf-stocker. Seriously, can someone enlighten me???

 

[bugchaser]

Hey, sorry I haven't gotten back to your PM yet. I think one of the above posters said it best when he said that the ag business is like 911. Farmers only call when they have an emergency or have no other option. The total acres sprayed is way way off from what it once was. There are lots of ag pilots out there making that 25k that you are making now. And they don't have any benefits at all. No health insurance, dissability, retirement, or any of the other things that people sometimes overlook. Having said that, there are still a few jobs out there that pay pretty well if you can wait around long enough for the guy flying it to retire. If you want to do it bad enough, you can. But please understand that it is very, very tough. Personally, I have been trying to get out of the ag business. Have been in it all my life and have spent many seasons going back and forth. I guess the grass is always greener. I just left a six figure spraying job to go to work for a regional. And I couldn't be happier. Money aint everything.

If you have any more specific questions, let me know. I know just about everyone in the business in Texas.

 

[avbug]

I'll take that six figure job. Money ain't everything, but spraying is much better flying than most, and peopled by folks I'd much rather be around...and I can buy a lot of gum balls for six figures.

Maybe even afford that subscription to Playboy, after all these years...

 

[bugchaser]

Like I said, to each his own.

 

[troy]

26K after 5 years??? Wouldn't you be better off at WalMart??? I honestly do not understand why pilots have to spend TWICE the amount of money on their education than does a college graduate, only to end up earning about as much as a WalMart shelf-stocker. Seriously, can someone enlighten me???

PFT????

 

[jehtplane]

Airlines, especially regionals, are not the end all be all. If you like to wear polyester, and still make $26k after 5 years at the company then go for it. The truthis it does not take much of a pilot to fly a glass cockpit airplane. Frankly, it is pretty boring going to the same cities over & over. I think I am heading back to a flying job that involved actually flying the airplane. I always swore that when I no longer looked forward to going to work it would be time to move on. I love flying way to much to put myself in a job that I dread going to. The last thing I want to be is a miserable old captain who wishes he had changed gears years ago.....

Ok, what regional do you fly for that makes 26k after 5 years?

 

[DO328FLYER]

Pay

5th yr f.o. pay for me is less than $29hr. Sad but true.

 

[Bryan D]

If you have any more specific questions, let me know. I know just about everyone in the business in Texas.

If you like flying small planes you could try your hand as a ferry pilot. The pay varies as does the work but it's a lot of fun. Speaking of which, BugChaser, I was ferrying a plane thru Texas and I stayed overnight at Quanah TX. The nice old man that ran the FBO there had a spray buisness. I forget his name but he tossed me the keys to his Cadillac and pointed me towards town. He didn't even ask my name. You meet the nicest people at small airports!

Add Stuttgart, AR to your list also. I believe crop dusting is their mainstay there.