| May 30, 2024 |
| Farm Bill Proceeds Out of House Ag Committee with Ag Aviation Regulatory Relief Measures |
 Last week, the U.S. House of Representatives’ Committee on Agriculture advanced a Farm Bill by a bipartisan vote of 33-21. Four committee Democrat—Reps. Don Davis (N.C.), Sanford Bishop (Ga.), Eric Sorensen (Ill.) and Yadira Caraveo (Colo.)—joined Republicans. NAAA-advocated regulatory relief provisions were included in the legislation, such as language ensuring that EPA and pesticide enforcement state lead agencies have the exclusive role in regulating pesticides and not a hodge-podge of local jurisdictions without scientific expertise that may make pesticide use rules based on emotion that unnecessarily handicaps agricultural production and burdens farmers and small business pesticide application businesses. Read More |
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| NAAREF to Host Fourth Annual In-Season Safety Session on June 3; Register In Advance |
 NAAREF will host an in-season safety session on June 3 at 8 p.m. CDT with a small panel of PAASS presenters. The topics will include current trends in ag accidents, good mentoring practices, and other topics of interest to participants. The safety session will be presented via a Zoom webinar. Read More |
| Air Tractor Celebrates 50 Years This Week |
 NAAA wishes heartfelt congratulations to Air Tractor for celebrating its 50th anniversary this week. Late founder Leland Snow dedicated his life to developing and designing quality ag planes for the world. In the early 1970s, after two-and-a-half years of coming up with about 600 production drawings, completing endless engineering reports to obtain FAA certification and the arduous task of acquiring financing, Leland began work on a prototype of the “AT-300.” Read More |
| Bill Lavender, AgAir Update Publisher, Celebrating 50 Years in the Aerial Application Industry |
 Bill Lavender, former ag pilot and publisher of AgAir Update, is celebrating 50 years in the aerial application industry in early June. In 1988, he obtained the rights from GAAA and converted AgAir Update from a newsletter into a newspaper. By the early 1990s, the newspaper expanded into the national market. He retired from ag spraying in the early 2000s to focus on his publications. Now a glossy magazine, today AgAir Update is distributed to more than 4,000 subscribers worldwide and continues to be a popular trade publication. Read More |
| Welcome to Fort Worth: Mayor's Special Message to Ag Aviation Expo Attendees |
 As Fort Worth gears up to host the 2024 Ag Aviation Expo, Mayor Mattie Parker has released a video message welcoming attendees to the city. In her address, Mayor Parker extends a warm Texas welcome, emphasizing the city's rich cultural heritage, vibrant community, and commitment to making this event a memorable experience for all. Read More |
| In Case You Missed It! |
| Pesticides Advance Sustainable Agriculture: Insights from University of Arkansas Life Cycle Assessment Study |
 In a first-of-its-kind effort to assess the environmental footprint of pesticide use, CropLife America (CLA) commissioned the University of Arkansas to examine crop productivity with and without pesticides (herbicides, insecticides, and fungicides) for three crops. The study was led by researchers Dr. Marty Matlock and Dr. Greg Thoma to conduct an independent three-year cradle-to-farmgate Life Cycle Assessment that comprehensively evaluates the environmental benefits and impacts of pesticide application in the cultivation of corn, cotton, and soybeans in the U.S. Read More |
| Exhibitor Details for the 2024 Ag Aviation Expo: Booth Sales for Aircraft & Large Booth Space Now Open |
| Join us for the 2024 Ag Aviation Expo in Fort Worth, Texas, Nov. 18-21. In addition to attending the NAAA Ag Aviation Expo, Fort Worth is full of great restaurants, bars, fun activities, and Texas hospitality! You can visit the Historic Stockyards for the world’s only twice-daily cattle drive, stop by Billy Bob’s, the world’s largest honkey tonk, or shop and dine in the 35-block Sundance Square entertainment district. The Fort Worth Aviation Museum is also a must-see. Read More |
| Air Tractor’s SOAR Fund Provides Higher Education Support for Children of Fallen Pilots |
 For two decades Air Tractor’s Student Outreach and Assistance Resource (SOAR) program has provided tuition assistance to college students who lost a parent in an aerial application accident involving an Air Tractor aircraft. The SOAR Fund provides $1,000 – $2,000 per year toward tuition for qualifying students attending accredited universities, junior colleges, or post-secondary vocational-technical schools in the United States and for students studying outside the U.S. Read More |
| Nominate a Deserving NAAA Member for a 2024 NAAA Award; Deadline August 5 |
 Do you have a rising pilot within your ranks? Do you admire certain NAAA members' outstanding service to the industry or their community? The aerial application industry is filled with exceptional people who go above and beyond the call of duty, often with little fanfare. Make someone’s day or year by nominating them for a 2024 NAAA Award. Read More |
| NAAA Endorses and Encourages Ag Aircraft GPS Data Collection Effort Protecting Manned Ag Aircraft from Drones |
| As the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) marches in lockstep with some corporate interests in the uncrewed aircraft systems (UAS) space, it is becoming clear that green lighting and expanding UAS beyond visual line of site (BVLOS) operations may be being prioritized over safety. Donate your GPS data logs. Read More |
