This Huey helicopter is fitted with a bucket that can lift 1 350 kg of manure or topsoil.

In a previous issue of ProAgri, we discussed the use of helicopters in the game industry. In this issue we look at the wide application of agricultural tasks helicopters are being used for.

In the past, these tasks used to be done manually or with tractors and tanks. Today helicopters equipped with custom-made spraying systems spray insecticides to curb plant pests and diseases, herbicides to eliminate and curb the spread of unwanted plants, and even chemicals that increase the rate of ripening or to stop growth.

A helicopter can also be fitted with a container, such as a bucket, for firefighting or a hopper to spread granular fertiliser or even compost.

Another lesser-known application is the use of the downdraft of a low-flying helicopter to protect sensitive and valuable crops in various ways.

Heli-Tractor

Eugene Kalafatis, known by his friends as Dog, started the company, HeliTractor, in 2000.

Eugene, who grew up on a farm, bought a farm in KwaZulu-Natal in 1993 and planted sugar cane. That was right about the time he started flying helicopters, and in 1997 he obtained his commercial helicopter pilot’s license. For a while he did aerial filming, anti-poaching, and farm patrols to accumulate flying hours.

These skills came in handy when he needed to spray his sugar cane with a ripening agent, and as it happened the time was ripe for his own business venture.

“This was the birth of helicopter agricultural (ag) flying,” says Eugene. Three years later he established Heli-Tractor, which is still based on his farm. “I’m a farmer and I know the needs and expectations of farmers.”

His first helicopter was an Enstrom F28C, which he fitted with an old ag rig which was built for this model in 1977. The rig had two side-mounted hoppers and could carry 300 litres, which was suitable for spraying the ripening agent. Heli-Tractor was the first commercial operation of helicopters in agriculture of its kind in South Africa, and the business has been growing ever since.”

He next used a Robinson 22 fitted with a spraying system. “I had many thousands of hours of spraying with this Robbie, but in 2007, when it was time to expand, I purchased the R22’s big brother, the Robinson 44.”

He realised that the R44 needed modifications for the purpose he intended to use it for, and he contacted a manufacturer who could alter the standard design.

“After a few months of drawings and e-mails, the first Heli-Tractor spray system was delivered and fitted to the R44. We are still using this system, which is the original Heli-Tractor. Many have unsuccessfully tried to copy it!”

He has since developed yet another first in the form of an agricultural spray system and firefighting sprayer rolled into one, which is fitted on a Bell Huey UH-1H.

South America and Ukraine Because of his unique, custom-made spraying systems, his services are sought after globally. He has even established a branch of Heli-Tractor in South America.

Eugene started spraying in Ecuador and has since worked in Peru, Chile, Brazil, Guatemala, and Columbia. “We can learn so much from these countries as they are way ahead of us regarding agriculture due to their huge government grants for research and development.”

He also visited the Ukraine in 2008 to provide instruction for operators and pilots who wanted to start their own ag businesses. “I trained them on how to properly use spray systems on helicopters, GPS guidance systems, as well as the management of such a business.”

No more flags

In 2007, Eugene acquired the first Tracmap GPS system from the company which was founded by Colin Brown of New Zealand. He became the first on the African continent to use Keyhole Markup Language (KML), which allows you to view and share Google Earth information.

“Farmers can create files on Google Earth of the fields they wish to have sprayed and e-mail these to us to upload on Tracmap. This eliminates the need for farmers to mark the fields that must be sprayed with flags. Afterwards, the fields that have been sprayed will show up on Google Maps.”

He also extended his services to bulk application of fertiliser and topdressing. In 2010, Heli-Tractor contracted IMS in New Zealand to manufacture a bucket that could lift 1 350 kg beneath a Huey for the application of granular fertiliser and topdressing on sugar-cane, maize fields, and forests. “This was another first for Africa,” says Eugene.

This helicopter was simultaneously fitted with a laser-guided ag system for accuracy within two centimetres — the first of its kind in the world to be fitted to a helicopter.

Electrostatic spraying

Another first for Heli-Tractor was the use of electrostatic crop spraying, which Eugene brought from South America to South Africa, where it is mostly used on avocados, sugar-cane, maize, soya beans, and macadamia nuts.

“With electrostatic spraying, the droplets that leave the spraying nozzles are positively charged so that they immediately attach to anything that is negatively charged, such as the plants the spraying is directed at.

“Instead of drifting like conventional spraying, the droplets directly find their target due to the forces of attraction. As the droplets are all positively charged, they do not attach to each other to form larger droplets that simply run off the plant.

“It has been proven in Brazil that farmers need up to 30% less pesticide, while 95% of trees with thick foliage, including the stem, bark, leaves, and husks of trees, is covered. This also saves money, time, and water, and it is more climate and bee friendly than conventional spraying.”

Cherries and blueberries

JB Rough is a young farmer in the Northwest province. Following in the footsteps of his late father Alec, a helicopter pilot, and his mother Petra, a keen conservationist, he and his sister Alexi both have an interest in helicopters and what these whirlybirds are capable of.

In 2014, JB started farming for a neighbour, an exporter of cherries and one of the first to produce blueberries in the area. “I soon realised that the blossoms were sensitive to extreme cold, and that rain caused the fruit to burst.

“In 2015, I suggested using helicopters to solve the problem. The farmer gave me one hour to prove that the Robinson 44 helicopter could help to dry the cherry trees and blueberry bushes after rain. I had done my homework — Google is champion! — and it worked!

“We use the rotor wash and heat of a running helicopter to combat frost late in winter and early spring and after a rain shower during blueberry harvest season. Our season stretches from June to December, and we depend on the availability of helicopters and pilots.”

According to JB, the different layers of air have different temperatures and still or undisturbed air cools down. “We use the downdraft of the rotor to mix the temperature layers. This prevents black frost on blossoms, and dry the fruit to prevent bursting.

“We continuously watch the weather reports and when extreme cold temperatures or showers are expected, we book a helicopter. The pilot must fly at exactly the correct height to blow water from the leaves and fruit without causing wind damage to the plants. Sometimes we are lucky and wind following a rainstorm has the same effect as a helicopter.

“When using a helicopter, it necessitates detailed planning, as it is an expensive method. Pilots charge per hour, also while just standing by in case they are needed. The cost must be weighed up against the kilograms of fruit you can save. At the beginning and in the middle of the season the risks are high, and it is of vital importance to protect the harvest with the help of helicopters.

“Costs of preventing damage caused by rain, wind, and frost, as well as export costs, must be measured against the potential income from the yield.

The price obtained for fruit on foreign markets and locally depends on whether it is the beginning, middle of end of season when there are no or little fruit on export foreign markets, or a glut when other producing countries flood the market.

Contact details:
Eugene Kalafatis at Heli-Tractor: helitractor2019@gmail.com or www.helitractor.co.za
JB Rough: +27-72-647-5116