NAAA has been hearing a great deal about unjustified claims that favor one aircraft platform over another. A recent example involved a caption in the Astoria South Fulton Argus that was brought to NAAA’s attention by a Midwestern operator. The photo caption described the good coverage provided by helicopters but failed to mention that fixed-wing aircraft also provide excellent crop coverage. NAAA sent a letter to the editor to set the record straight.

The letter described how both fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters provide excellent canopy penetration and coverage. A recent article that appeared in Agricultural Aviation was referenced to provide readers more details about the differences and similarities between these two platforms. The Illinois Pesticide Review was also referenced, which recently also covered the subject to help highlight the fact that neither application platform is superior to the other in terms of efficacy. The Midwest in particular has seen a great deal of misinformation being spread about how helicopters push more spray into the canopy than fixed-wing aircraft.