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Drone Collides with Helicopter in Daytona Beach

A drone collided with a helicopter that conducts sightseeing tours this past weekend over the Daytona Beach, FL flea market. Although no one was injured, the drone collision caused $60,000 in damage to the helicopter and the incident is under investigation by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The drone operator was reportedly looking down at his computer tablet when the collision occurred.

This incident is another reason why NAAA’s position is that Uncrewed Aerial Systems (UAS’s) operating either within visual line of sight or beyond visual line-of-sight (BVLOS) be required to equip and utilize detect and avoid (DAA) technology which has been FAA-certified as effective at protecting the unique nature of crewed manned aircraft, aerial application operations or otherwise. Just in the past few months, NAAA has submitted comments to the FAA regarding exemption petitions by Wing Aviation LLC and American Aerospace Technologies Incorporated, amongst many others over the years, requiring UAS equip with DAA and give right-of-way to manned aircraft.

NAAA urges adherence to the following UAS safety protocols:

  • Crewed aircraft should always have the right-of-way over UAS.
  • Commercially utilized UAS should be certified by FAA as airworthy
  • Before UAS operate in areas commonly trafficked by crewed aircraft, such as above farms, they should be equipped with ADS-B In to be able to detect crewed aircraft with ADS-B Out. Ultimately, NAAA believes that UAS should be mandatorily equipped with FAA-certified detect and avoid (DAA) technology that detects crewed aircraft (both cooperative and non-cooperative) and alerts UAS to their position so they can give way to them.
  • The above DAA technology should be a prerequisite for Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) operations.
    UAS should be equipped with visible strobe lighting, and ideally painted in readily distinguishable colors, such as aviation orange and white, to increase visibility.
  • UAS pilots should be held to a standard similar to crewed aviation pilots. This includes requiring a pilot certificate to demonstrate proper knowledge of the NAS, as well as a third-class medical certificate to demonstrate physical capability to operate a UAS.

    NAAA will continue to advocate to policymakers the importance of regulating drones to ensure they safely operate amongst manned aircraft and the public.

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NAAA Comments on Article About Virginia Residents Wanting Notification Before Pesticide Spraying

Last year, a Virginia state delegate proposed a bill in Virginia’s General Assembly that would require all agricultural aviators making an aerial application west of the Blue Ridge Mountains to provide a seven-day notification for all such applications. Advocacy by NAAA, the Virginia Farm Bureau and other ag interests was able to convince the delegate to withdraw the legislation.

Recently, several residents in Grayson County, VA have formed an advocacy group called Preserve Grayson, which continues to press for a Virginia state law to require advanced notification and disclosure of chemicals before companies apply pesticides to the nearby commercial trees. NAAA CEO Andrew Moore commented in late December 2023 to an article written by the Richmond Times Dispatch, a Richmond, VA newspaper, about the issue. Moore commented that seven days’ notification is not conducive to effective pest treatment He also commented that the EPA reviews pesticides for safety continuously and that enforcement provisions exist and are enforced by both the EPA and the states in the rare event that there is a misapplication.

Moore also provided details on DriftWatch where crop producers, beekeepers and pesticide applicators can voluntarily log information onto a geospatial database informing pesticide applicators of sensitive crops that may be nearby. “Nobody wants to be fined or damage things on nearby land,” Moore said. Read the article here.

NAAA stands ready to assist state ag aviation associations with the information they may need to stave off burdensome and unnecessary regulations affecting ag aviation.
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Top 10 Agricultural Aviation Articles of 2023

The Agricultural Aviation magazine published many informative articles in 2023. Below is a list of the top 10 digital articles from Agricultural Aviation’s 2023 issues based on the most viewed articles at AgAviationMagazine.org and the Agricultural Aviation Magazine App.

Get the Free Agricultural Aviation App
If you haven’t installed the free Agricultural Aviation Magazine App on your smartphone or tablet, you are missing out on a great way to tap into a library’s worth of Agricultural Aviation issues in the palm of your hand. Download the Agricultural Aviation Magazine App and see how easy it is to use. The app is compatible with all Apple, Google and Amazon mobile devices and can be downloaded from their respective app stores by searching “Agricultural Aviation Magazine.” Enable push notifications to be alerted when new digital editions are published and to receive occasional notifications about pertinent articles.
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NAAA Family Grows, Congratulations to Matt & Carina Gill

The NAAA family has grown. Congratulations to NAAA’s Manager of Education, Safety and Policy, Matt Gill and his wife Carina, who welcomed baby boy Weston Michael Gill on Dec. 27, 2023.

Weston joins big sister Amelia and fur-sister Reyna. The new family is healthy, strong, and figuring out life with four humans and one canine.
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Set Yourself Up for Success by Renewing Your Membership for 2024

If you have not renewed your NAAA membership for 2024, the grace period ends on Feb. 15! We urgently request your continued support by renewing your NAAA membership for 2024. While you have been busy aiding farmers to produce a safe, affordable, and abundant supply of food, fiber, and bioenergy, NAAA has been busy making sure low-altitude airspace is safe for your aerial application business to operate, as well as ensuring that you have the pesticide products you need to do your job. 

This year, NAAA is focusing on external communications to farmers in largely circulated ag publications touting the benefits of aerial application and hiring ag pilots to handle spraying work. NAAA is contributing articles and ads throughout 2024 in Farm Journal’s publications promoting aerial application services and how their readers can directly search the location of your aerial application business to a potential circulation of 150,000 ag retailer, crop consultants and farmers throughout the U.S.! Read our first article here. Sign up for a free issue of The Daily Scoop here and subscribe to The Scoop magazine here. 

Several of NAAA’s services conducted on your behalf, include: 

  • The second year of C-PAASS, our professional certification program for aerial applicators that take additional steps to augment their professionalism through education and testing, positioning themselves to be recognized and rewarded by their insurance providers, pesticide manufacturers, and customers. Learn more at https://education.agaviation.org/. 
  • Submitting no fewer than 270 comments since 2017 to the EPA to keep aerial applications on pesticide labels enabling you to keep a deep inventory of pesticide tools without unnecessary and burdensome restrictions.
  • Development of a health care insurance policy in 2024 for NAAA members to purchase for their families and employees at competitive rates.

Supporting NAAA as a member helps provide NAAA with more resources so that we can in turn provide you with more and more membership assets. Continued benefits in 2024 to members include legal consultation on federal aviation laws, discounts for attending or exhibiting at the Ag Aviation Expo, staying connected to members through the print and online NAAA Membership Directory and receiving NAAA publications and eNewsletters, social media briefings and substantive web content at AgAviation.org. 

Please make it a priority to renew your NAAA membership—the payoff far exceeds what you will spend in dues in the form of effective advocacy that reduces regulation and taxes affecting your aerial application business and trade association membership dues are tax deductible. If you prefer to pay over the phone, please call (202) 546-5722.
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NAAA & NAAREF Board Meetings Feb. 15-17 in Alexandria, VA

The February 2024 NAAA & NAAREF Board and Committee meetings will take place next week, Feb. 15-17 in Alexandria, Virginia. Click here to view a schedule.

All meetings are open to NAAA members. If you are not a board or committee member but are interested in attending, please contact Lindsay Barber for more details.

Hotel Details
Hilton Old Town Alexandria
1767 King Street
Alexandria, VA 22314

The Hilton Old Town is located directly next to the King Street Metro stop (take either the Blue or Yellow Line), which is the second stop south of Reagan National Airport (DCA). If you don’t want to take a cab, Lyft or Uber, you can use the Metro and there is now an app that you can download to pay directly from your smartphone. You can view a map of the metro system here.

The room block is closed. Contact Lauren Henretty with hotel questions.

Board Books: The Board book was provided to board and committee members on Feb. 5. If you did not receive it, please contact Lindsay Barber for a link. 
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