NAAREF Hosts Fifth In-Season Safety Session; A Must Listen for All Ag Pilots—Session Recording Available on NAAA Education Center
On Tuesday evening NAAREF hosted its fifth annual in-season safety session. The PAASS presenter panelists included ag pilots Rod Thomas of Idaho and NAAREF president, Sam Styron of Missouri, Brian Rau of North Dakota, and Eric Klindt of Minnesota. The session was opened and closed by NAAREF Executive Director Andrew Moore. Moore started the session off by introducing all the panelists and discussing the purpose of the in-season safety session – to have a safety reset in order to bring the focus back to safety for all ag pilots as the busiest part of the season begins.
Moore handed it over to Thomas, who brought up the importance of saying no in aviation. Operators need to give their pilots and ground crew the right to say no when they feel something is not right, or if a part of the job is beyond their skill level. Don’t put yourself in the position of accepting jobs you would otherwise turn down for safety reasons because you’re worried about finances. Rod also brought up the new NAAA Flight Risk Assessment Tool (FRAT) and how it can be used to keep safety in mind by going through a quick checklist before every flight.
Next to speak was Brian Rau who reminded everyone about the importance of keeping wires in the forefront of your mind. Brian talks to himself out loud before each pass about the wires and other obstructions he’ll face in the upcoming pass. He also talked about landing with a load, which he was forced to do so already this season. Ag pilots can watch a video on how to safely land with a load on the NAAA Education Center.
Eric Klindt talked next about being extra cautious when you have low time in type for the aircraft you’re flying, which PAASS has frequently stated is less than 500 hours. In Eric’s case, having a new GPS he was not familiar with caused substantial change and reduced his comfort level in the cockpit, even though he had far more than 500 hours in the aircraft itself. Eric also relayed a personal story about the importance of keeping your cockpit clean and organized.
Sam Styron talked about the layers of distraction that can lead to an accident. Getting distracted in the cockpit can be easy – you can start thinking about customers, weather, and other issues. Pilots need to stay focused on the job at hand and not let this happen. This is important for avoiding CFIT accidents because if your attention is diverted to something other than the job at hand, you may not conduct a proper reconnaissance for wires, towers, and other obstructions.
Moore closed the session by thanking everyone for attending, wishing them a safe and productive season, and reminding everyone a recording of the safety session will be available on NAAA’s Education Center and to share it with ag pilots. He also mentioned the plethora of ag aviation safety materials available on the Education tab of the NAAA website. To view the recording of the safety session, click here.