DC m^vp.

'nited States

Department of

Agriculture

Combined Forest Pest

Research and

Development Program

Agriculture Handbook

No. 535

l_J)

Gypsy Moth

Handbook

/ 5^ 7 3 9- i^ </

Technological

Developments

in Aerial %

Spraying 4

-if-
Technological Developments

in Aerial Spraying

by

William B. White/

Harry B. Hubbard, Jr.,^

Noel F. Schneeberger,^

and Bernard J. Raimo ^

In 1974 the U.S. Department of

Agriculture initiated the

Combined Forest Pest Research

and Development Program, an

interagency effort that

concentrated on the Douglas-fir

tussock moth in the West, on the

southern pine beetle in the

South, and on the gypsy moth in

the Northeast. The work

reported in this publication was

funded in whole or in part by the

program. This manual is one in a

series on the gypsy moth.

Introduction

One aspect of the Expanded Gypsy

Moth Research and Development

Program was to conduct field and

pilot tests of new pesticides.

Coincidental with this pesticide

research were the design and testing

of technological improvements in

both the support and evaluation

phases of aerial spraying.

From previous experience with

aerial spraying, research personnel

recognized the need for an efficient,

transportable mixing system for

pesticides at the loading site; good

communication among all

participants in the field and on the

ground; and an inexpensive,

efficient method for recording the

effects of experimental forest

pesticides.

This booklet discusses a trailermounted pesticide mixing system, a

radio communication network, and

an aircraft camera mount for smallformat photographic equipment, all

of which were designed and tested

by research personnel.

Specifications for any of these

systems may be obtained from the

Forest Service, 151 Sanford St.,

Hamden, Conn. 06514.

' Northeastern Area State and Private

Forestry, Hamden, Conn.

^ Forest Service, Northeastern Forest

Experiment Station, Hamden, Conn.
A Trailer-Mounted

Pesticide Mixing System

Ground support mixing equipment

rented on contract is expensive and

frequently unable to meet the

special needs of experimental

pesticide programs. To solve this

problem, specialists designed a

trailer-mounted pesticide mixing

system.

The mixing unit is simple enough

for a two-man crew efficiently

to provide complete ground support,

including pesticide mixing and

aircraft loading (figs. 1 and 2). In

addition, it also contains a steam

cleaner to flush the system after

use, a closed pesticide mixing

system to protect workers and

prevent accidental spills, barrel

handling equipment to facilitate

formulation, tool boxes, and

external lighting equipment.

In 1975, 1976, and 1977 the pesticide

mixing unit was used operationally.

Two people loaded premixed

pesticides for three aircraft and

maintained a 6-minute turnaround

time for each aircraft. In 1976, the use

of this system reduced the contract

cost of a U.S. Department of Agriculture operation by 66 percent.

Table 1 lists the equipment needed for

this mixing system.

Table 1.—Equipment neededfor the

trailer-mounted pesticide

formulation system

1. Trailer—General Eager

Beavei^, Model-AP8 8.

Capacity—8,000 lb

Bed length—12 ft

Bed width—lA in

2. Meters—Neptune, Model 431

lV2Ín 9.

3. Pumps, Peabody Barnes®,

Model 4CCG, 3.0 hp at 3,600 10.

rpm, cast iron, self-priming,

centrifugal

4. Generator—gas-operated with 11.

capacity of 2,400 W 12.

5. Steam cleaner—^Malsbury®,

kerosene fired, electrically

driven 13.

6. Mixing tanks (2)—300 gal,

stainless steel (built to 14.

specification)

7. Water tank (l)-400 gal, 15.

stainless steel, with two covers

for filling (built to specification)

Closed mixing system—

Soilserv®, unit with threematerial inlets (includes barrel

probes and wettable powder

box)

Vacuum unit—gas driven (for

operating mixing system)

Valves—one-quarter turn, quick

shutoff type (on all circulating

lines)

Hose—oil-delivery type

Strainers (2)—50 mesh (to strain

material before it is loaded in

aircraft)

Hose connectors—cam-lock

type

Tool boxes (built to

specification)

Screw jacks—^for leveling and

stabilizing trailer
Figure 1.—Side view of

components of pesticide

mixing trailer.

A. Tool boxes

B. Protective cover

C. Platform

D. Tank covers

E. 300-gallon tank

F. Recirculating line

G. Flow meter

H. Pomp

I Closed mixing system

J. Pump for water and closed system IT
^ s

1 Figure 2.—Top view of

components of pesticide

mixing trailer.

U

1- -1

c

u. B

0

il.

LU

n

&;a o Û

s

A. Tool boxes

B. Steam cleaner

C. Vacuum pump

D. Alternator

E. Platform

F. 300-gallon tanks

G. 400-gallon tank (water)

H. Covers for mixing tanks

I. Covers for water tank

J. Flow meters

K. Pumps

L. Closed mixing system

M. Pump for water and closed system
A Communication

Network

The efficiency, safety, and overall

success of aerial application of

pesticides are often dependent upon

good communication among

participating personnel. The

research and development of a

workable communication system

are the cooperative efforts of the

Forest Service, the Animal and

Plant Health Inspection Service

(APHIS), and the Electronics

Center at Beltsville, Md., all part of

the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

The resulting network (fig. 3) is

comprised of two component

systems—aground and aerial—^and is

approved by the Federal Aviation

Administration (FAA) and the

Federal Communications

Commission (FCC). The network

frequencies are also approved for

use near the Canadian border by the

Canadian Department of

Communication Regulation.

Ground System

Portable

repeater

Personal portables

(field crews)

/

/

//

//

//

/

Base station

(personnel quarters)

/

/

/

/

Mobile units
Aerial System

Spray aircraft

Base airport

Figure 3.—A radio

communication network

for aerial pesticide

application operations.

Chase aircraft
Ground System

The ground system permits

communication among personnel in

the spray blocks, at the airport, in

project vehicles, and with

cooperating agencies using

compatible frequencies. The

keystone of the ground system is a

portable repeater, which increases

the operating range of the radios by

amplifying and transmitting the

radio signals from ground equipment

with a mnge otherwise limited to

line-of-sight transmission. The other

components of the ground system

are a base radio, mobile radios, and

personal portable radios (table 2). A

useful feature of the mobile units is

an automatic scanning mode, which

permits simultaneous monitoring of

all frequencies within the ground

system. Six radio frequencies are

available for use within the ground

system (table 4). Four are assigned

to the Forest Service, and two are

assigned to APHIS. The interagency

communication ability of the system

facilitates cooperative aerial spray

operations.

Table 2.—Ground system components

1. Repeater—General Electric 3.

Lookout®, 12 Vd.c.

a. Duplexer—Motorola® Model

T-1487-8

b. Tower—crank-up type, 75 ft

c. Antenna—Phelps-Dodge®, 4.

Model TDD6075A, 6 dB gain

d. Power source—Radio Shack

Micronta®, 12 V d.c.

2. Base radio—Motorola

Consolette® (with automatic

scanning), 12 V d.c. or 110 V

a.c.

a. Tower—section type, 30 ft

b. Antenna—Phelps-Dodge®,

omnidirectional

Mobile radios (2)—Aerotron®

Model MPAC-6 (with automatic

scanning), 12 V d.c, with

standard antenna

Personal portable radios (5)—

I.E.G. Gorp.®, Model LE-100,

9.6 Vd.c.

a. Rechargeable nickel-cadmium

type batteries—I.E.G. Gorp.®

b. Carrying case—I.E.G. Gorp.®

c. Battery charger—I.E.G.

Gorp.®
Aerial System

The aerial system permits

communication among the project

aircraft, FAA facilities (including the

base airport), and the project

supervisor (table 3). Because the

latter has sole communication

between both the aerial and ground

systems, the network permits pilot

communication without interference

from ground and crew chatter. Ten

radio frequencies are available for

use within the aerial system (table 4).

The radio communication network

not only expedites many of the

ground activities but also serves to

increase quality of aerial

application. For example, missed

areas in spray blocks can be located

by ground crews; spray pilots can

then make remedial applications.

This communication network is also

a valuable safety aid. Without

modification, the network can

immediately fiinction in emergency

air rescue and ground evacuation

should any aircraft crash or require

emergency assistance.

Table 3.—Aerial system components

1. Mobile radios (2)—Radair®,

Model lOB, 10 channel, 12 V d.c.

a. Antenna—^aircraft type

b. Vehicle mounting bracket

c. Microphone

d. Crystals

2. Standard equipment used by

aircraft in normal air operations
Table 4.—Assigned Ground

frequencies Channel Transmit Receive

1 168.70 FS simplex '

2 170.975 168.70 FS repeater^

3 170.450 APHIS simplex

4 170.425 FS simplex

5 170.525 APHIS simplex

6 168.625 FS simplex

(nationwide fire

and aircraft)

10
Air

Channel Transmit Receive

P 122.900 Agriculture, air to air

2» 122.950 Agriculture

33 122.925 Natural resources

4* 122.800 Local airports

5* 123.000 Local airports

6 thru 8 Assigned frequencies

of local airports with

tower control

9 122.500 Nationwide tower monitoring

frequency

10 126.200 Nationwide military tower

control

* The simplex system is a transceiver using the same frequency for transmit and receive

and has a limited range.

^ The repeater system uses different frequencies to transmit and receive. This enables the

repeater to receive from portable units on 170.975, boost the signal, and transmit on

168.70 to another portable unit. This configuration increases the effective range of all

units.

^ These frequencies are used exclusively for the aerial spray operations.

"* UNICOM (aeronautical advisory service) for airports without a control tower or flight

service.

^ UNICOM (aeronautical advisory service) for airports with control tower and flight

service.

11
Aircraft Mount for

Small-Format Camera

There has been a need for a simple,

inexpensive, and lightweight

alternative to the sophisticated

aerial photographic equipment used

to document insect defoliation. The

mount developed recently is a

modification of existing technology

and can accommodate 35mm,

70mm, or 2V4 x

The camera platform is constructed

of layers of fiberglass cloth and

resin. Mounting brackets and plates

are constructed of aircraft-type

aluminum, and the handle is made

of a ^/8 in aluminum rod. Figure 4

shows a diagram of the mount.

Adapting an aircraft for the camera

Figure 4.—Side view of

the small-format aircraft

camera mount.

All materials of aircraft type:

A.

B.

C.

E.

F

G.

H.

Piano hinge ^

Fib€;rglass platform for camera

(11 X 11 X V4in)

Outside and inside hinges for

handles

Adjustment clamps to level

mount

Camera attachment clamp

Sighit (90°)

Crab adjustment plates

Handle to raise and lower

mount

' This hinge is used to attach the mount to

the airframe. Half of the hinge is bolted to

the airframe and the other half is bolted to

the mount base. The hinge pin is inserted

or removed to secure quickly or remove

the mount from the aircraft. This allows

for a fast change from standard flight to

photo configuration at any airport without

using any specific equipment.

12
mount requires only slight

modification of the cargo door

window and no alteration of the

airframe itself Initially, a Piper

Cherokee-Six 300® was chosen

because it has stable flight

characteristics and because the

cargo door is situated behind the left

wing. The camera mount was placed

in the cargo door window, where it

was away from engine exhaust and

free of obstructions. Further

investigations revealed two other

aircraft with identical body

configurations capable of

accommodating the mount: the

Piper Cherokee Lance® and the

Piper Seneca II®. The latter is a

light twin-engine aircraft and has the

advantage of greater range.

The plane may be flown with the

mount retracted, or in position for

photographing (fig. 5) when a clip is

placed at the top of the window hole

to hold the mount secure in the

horizontal position. All materials

used for mount construction and

aircraft modification must be FAA

approved.

Figure 5.—Aircraft

camera mount and smallformat camera in lowered

position.

13
The mount has been tested in two

aircraft and with two different

camera systems (35mm and 2V4 x

2V4 in formats). The results have

shown that reliable, inexpensive,

and high-quality photographs can be

made for documenting insect-caused

tree defoliation (fig. 6). Each of the

camera formats accommodated by

this mount performed equally well.

As needs and purposes intensify,

one format may be better suited

than another.

Figure 6.—Color infrared

photograph of pesticidetreated spray block taken

by small-format camera.

The mount is advantageous from a

safety standpoint. With the camera

mounted securely and the

photographer safely belted into the

rear seat, there is no need for

personnel to work through open

aircraft doors. The mount and type

of aircraft modification are

approved by the FAA and the

Forest Service.

14
Acknowledgments

A special thank you is extended to

the following people:

For help in the fabrication and

modification of the trailer-mounted

pesticide mixing system: David G.

Holland, contributing designer,

Forest Service, Albuquerque, N.M.,

and F & W Welding, Orange, Conn.

For help in developing the

communication network: Jack

Henderson, Animal and Plant

Health Inspection Service,

Beltsville, Md.; John Alberts,

Electronics Center, Beltsville, Md.;

and Ron Leavitt, Forest Service,

Milwaukee, Wis.

For assistance in the development of

the aircraft mount for small-format

camera: Roger T. Zerillo,

collaborating designer. Forest

Service, Hamden, Conn.; Ralph

Alex, designated engineering

representative for the FAA at

Sikorsky Aircraft, Stratford, Conn.;

William Jackson, Forest Service,

Milwaukee, Wis. ; New Haven

Airways, New Haven, Conn.;

Arnold Payne, New Haven Airways;

and Hart Engineering, Oxford,

Conn.

Use of commercial and trade names does not

imply approval or constitute endorsement by the

U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Issued December 1978

Available from the Superintendent of

Documents

US. Government Printing Office

Washington, D.C. 2(M02

Stock No. 001-000-03871-1

"SV U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE : 1978 O—273-080

15