Air Tractors battle grasshoppers

On earlier occasions, I have written on here and here about the important role that Air Tractors play in aerial firefighting, both in their role as SEATs and in post fire remediation (e.g. applying hydromulch. The various models of Air Tractors also play an important role in crop dusting and/or insect control.

When I got my paper copy of the New York Times this morning and turned to the national news, I saw a picture of an Air Tractor being used in grasshopper control. I was reminded that plagues of grasshoppers and locust are not just something that I read about when I was studying American history and reading the devastation caused by very large swarms of grasshoppers and locusts during the dust bowl of the 1930s and earlier. This is not about Pa Ingalls always finding a way to feed his family when the grasshoppers ate his crops. For farmers in many sections of this country, farmers are worried about the possibility of grasshoppers damaging their entire crop. One of the important tools in our arsenal are the Air Tractors and other agricultural planes along with their pilots. With that in mind, I thought that some of you might enjoy this article and the accompanying photo slideshow.