This week, FAA released the Draft Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) for Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) drone operations as well as a Fact Sheet describing some of the broad strokes of the NPRM. This was ahead of a Press Conference on “Unleashing American Drone Dominance,” wherein the NPRM was introduced. Many of its provisions severely endanger low-altitude crewed aircraft.
RFD-TV covered last month’s U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit ruling that the Kritter Cropdusting case, stemming from a fatal wire-strike crash, must go to a jury trial. RFD-TV anchor Suzanne Alexander interviewed Roger McEowen with the Washburn School of Law, who brought up the question of whether farmers and landowners should be required to disclose to an ag pilot if there are hazards in a field.
Spatial disorientation continues to be a major concern in aviation safety, responsible for 5% to 10% of general aviation accidents, and tragically, 90% of those incidents are fatal, according to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). Even seasoned pilots can fall victim when the body’s equilibrium and visual cues are in conflict.
Nebraskaland Aviation, an NAAA operator member based in Holdrege, NE, is celebrating the retirement of two veteran ag pilots with a combined 95 years and nearly 50,000 hours of flight experience.
Alexander Paul Leamon was fatally injured in an ag aviation accident on July 22, 2025, in Oregon, Illinois. He was born on April 11, 2002. After graduating from high school in 2020, he studied agronomy at Highland Community College before attending and graduating from an ag aviation training school.
The members and staff of NAAA offer their deepest sympathies and condolences to the family and friends of Stanley Joseph Hebert Jr. who was fatally injured in ag aviation accident on July 23, 2025, near Thibodaux, Louisiana. Born on January 3, 1958, he was 67 years old at the time of his passing.
NAAA members are invited to join fellow Arkansas brethren for a fun-filled weekend of golf and fellowship on October 18–19. The Red Apple Inn and Country Club in Heber Springs, Arkansas, is hosting the 2025 Ag Aviation Golf Tournament. The $200 entry fee covers two rounds of golf, happy hour and dinner at the Red Apple Inn and Country Club on Saturday evening.
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