Agricultural Aviation Group Seeks Channel for Air-to-Air Communications
The National Agricultural Aviation Association is asking the FCC to designate an aviation radio frequency for agricultural operations, allowing air-to-air communications for situational awareness and safety. The FAA has told the group that 122.925 MHz would be “a suitable air-to-air frequency for this purpose,” but authorizing the channel requires FCC action, said a filing this week.
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“Aerial application is an important method for applying pesticides, for it permits large areas to be covered rapidly -- by far crewed ag aircraft are the fastest application ... when it matters most,” the association said. Aerial spraying “takes advantage, more than any other form of application, of the often too-brief periods of acceptable weather for spraying and allows for the timely treatment of pests while they are in critical developmental stages, often over terrain that is too wet or otherwise inaccessible for terrestrial applications. It also treats above the crop canopy, thereby not disrupting the crop and damaging it.”