onetrack Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 Here's some pretty unique uses for choppers in the U.S. and Canada .... 1. Rice pollination, Danbury Texas. Apparently the rotor blast does the job much faster than bees. https://verticalmag.com/features/how-helicopters-give-rice-growers-a-helping-hand/ 2. Blowing excess water off cherries in Canada to prevent fruit rot; https://www.bccherry.com/helicopter/ 3. Picking Noble Fir pine cones with a neat harvesting cone dropped over the tree; https://www.weyerhaeuser.com/blog/sustainability-stories-noble-fir-cones/ 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Litespeed Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 Wow, Never before have I seen a helicopter packing cones. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reynard Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 I guess they don’t use choppers to dry cricket pitches in Canada and Texas though. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IBob Posted February 3 Share Posted February 3 In NZ they are sometimes used to prevent overnight frost damage in orchards at key points in the growth cycle. Or they used to be. Very expensive and very boring for the pilot, hovering in place over a marker light. Other frost protection methods include: Windmills, like small wind generators, permanently installed at various points. Either electrically powered or diesel/petrol. Though the petrol ones went out of fashion after it was discovered the engines were perfect for jet boats, and a few orchardists went out on frosty nights to discover nothing attached to their windmills........... Spraying water on the foliage. And smoke pots used to be used a lot, but around towns they are only allowed them a few times each year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
facthunter Posted February 3 Share Posted February 3 Agree on that. Small choppers like robbos aren't going to have a great effect on anything if they move along at any real speed. There's no real energy density. Nev Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IBob Posted February 3 Share Posted February 3 Yep, they didn't fly up and down, Nev: just hovered in place until moved to another spot. And it wasn't a 5 minute job, sometimes they were up for hours. This was in one of NZs principal fruit growing areas, principally for export. But I moved out of the area 20 years ago, I have no idea if they still do it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IBob Posted February 3 Share Posted February 3 Hughes/MD500s were also famously used for deer shooting, then later for live capture by wrangling, net guns and tranquilizer darts. There's a fair bit of exciting footage on Youtube, if anyone wants to look at it. And in some locations it got territorial: a pilot friend of mine gave it away after a bullet hole appeared in his canopy during a deer recovery flight. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skippydiesel Posted March 2 Share Posted March 2 I wonder, at what cost in $$$ and pollution. Bees may be slower but they don't pollute & they provide honey & wax. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
facthunter Posted March 2 Share Posted March 2 They are ALL a BUZZ around orchards here. Nev 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skippydiesel Posted March 2 Share Posted March 2 "They are ALL a BUZZ around orchards here. Nev" Not for much longer - the State & Federal Governments have let Varroa Destructor Mite & Small Hive Beetle into the county. Our World leading bee industry is going to go through some very hard times. Many aperists will lose their livelihood. Bee products will become very much more expensive. The use of bees in commercial crop pollination, is likely to be diminished, impacting on agricultural productivity. Lower yields means higher prices in the shops, hitting your pockets. Our leaders are more concerned with illegal drugs than with agricultural/exotic pests entering the country. Illegal drugs are a tragedy affecting a few - agricultural & exotic pests entering Australia, will be (are) a financial & environmental disaster for generation to come. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marty_d Posted March 2 Share Posted March 2 1 hour ago, skippydiesel said: Our leaders are more concerned with illegal drugs than with agricultural/exotic pests entering the country. Illegal drugs are a tragedy affecting a few - agricultural & exotic pests entering Australia, will be (are) a financial & environmental disaster for generation to come. We should be able to walk and chew gum at the same time. If not why not. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
facthunter Posted March 2 Share Posted March 2 We expect the government and teachers police etc to DO EVERTHING and pay no taxes.. You've got hot Water Power Air cond Hospitals fire fighters etc better than 98% of the world. . Nev 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skippydiesel Posted March 2 Share Posted March 2 Nev, it's a question of priorities. It's got very little to do with tax revenue, other than where best to invest it it, for the betterment long term of our country. In most instances adequate quarantine, surveillance, enforcement, can & should be paid for by the importer, who then passes on the cost to the consumer - no direct tax $$$ Equine Influenza entering Australia was a direct result of the thoroughbred (race) industry, being given permission to run its own quarantine system - guaranteed to fail, due to financial self interest and blatant disregard for the integrity of our boarders. I don't recall any of the guilty being fined/jailed. Could it be they have mates in high places? Politician want attention grabbing, vote getting, topics/situations with quick solutions. In general they are not good managers (managers being a profession that should have strategies for the short/medium/long term) so biological imports that should be stopped at our borders, are not, due to a failure to prioritise the tax dollars. When a newly arrived pest is discovered, our leaders should throw everything, including the kitchen sink, at it to prevent it becoming endemic but Nooooo -States & Feds squabble about who will take charge/spend the dollars and in the mess the bug/weed/virus/animal/etc gets away. Our boarder's should be a National/Federal responsibility ie the quarantine system should be run by the Feds but once again it's a mish mash of State/Fed implementation (eg NSW Ag being responsible for CV19 infected people departing a cruise liner). Complacency/Apathy Rules - we will find out, only when we have lost this once wonderful environment. 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
facthunter Posted March 3 Share Posted March 3 We lost that when Lantana bush and rabbits were introduced, cane toads and fire ants and an endless variety of weeds. It goes on and on.. Nev 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrendAn Posted March 3 Share Posted March 3 If labour didn't waste all our money more could be spent on important things . 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skippydiesel Posted March 3 Share Posted March 3 7 hours ago, facthunter said: We lost that when Lantana bush and rabbits were introduced, cane toads and fire ants and an endless variety of weeds. It goes on and on.. Nev It doesn't have to. Our leaders are, through negligence on our borders, trashing our wonderful environment. Sure there have been mistakes/failures in our distant/recent past, this is no reason to shrug our shoulders and turn away from proper boarded security (not talking about human imports). The authorities crow about every illegal drug bust, "mule" intercepted and drag the offenders off to a taxpayers funded jail, while smacking imborters of organic material (animal/plant/insect) on the wrist (sometimes not even that). It's completely arse about. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
facthunter Posted March 4 Share Posted March 4 What about the people who try to sneak processed meats etc through customs and resist any search on a "restriction of my freedoms" etc? Mabe you have it ar$e about. Nev 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spenaroo Posted March 4 Share Posted March 4 (edited) On 02/03/2024 at 4:26 PM, Marty_d said: We should be able to walk and chew gum at the same time. If not why not. because one is sexy and makes good optics. the same reason why air forces are freely spending on fighter jets - but don't spend the same money on bombers.... (I bet you more bombs have been dropped then missiles fired in the last 30 years of warfare) Honestly it amazes me customs catches anything. every time I return from overseas its a self declare and walk on through. remember questioning about a timer frame painting I had. and they didn't care, just waved me past. never had a bag searched. unlike my experience with African countries, (remember the USA more concerned with finger prints and visa's - and walking through Italy without talking to anyone just scanned the passport) and then you have parcel and packages..... Edited March 4 by spenaroo 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
onetrack Posted March 4 Author Share Posted March 4 Every parcel gets x-rayed today and they don't often miss much. But the problem lies in sea containers and ships that pick up "travellers" and dirt/weeds/seeds that are not picked up. Fortunately, the constant searches for drugs also uncovers other undesirable imports. But I never cease to be amazed at the illegal imports that show up in the Border Security TV show - and how so many of the travelling idiots play dumb, as regards our quarantine laws. The fines need to go to $5000 and $10,000, so they really learn their lessons. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skippydiesel Posted March 4 Share Posted March 4 3 hours ago, facthunter said: What about the people who try to sneak processed meats etc through customs and resist any search on a "restriction of my freedoms" etc? Mabe you have it ar$e about. Nev Last time I checked meat was/is an organic substance - Organic, in my book, is any substance that has been grown/is growing/can be grown/product of an animal/plant. Clearly wool/cotton/silk/etc & other fabrics are organic so some rational would have to be brought to the situation, however anything that can be considered to be a food stuff (for human /animal consumption) was or is alive, is the product of a plant/animal eg wood/manure has the potential to do terrible damage to not only our agriculture industry but also to our environment. In my humble opinion, Australia should have: Large signs at every departure air & ship port,for incoming passengers, spelling out in multiple languages, severe penalties for the importation of any organic substance without a license/permit. Multi language leaflets to be issued with every ticket & boarding pass to Australia, containing the above message. Final chance bins, at every gateway/dock before Customs/Immigration for the disposal of organic materials. Very severe penalties for any person caught attempting the importation of the above. Penalties for non citizens - automatic, immediate no appeal, return to to place of origin/country of citizenship and 20 year ban from entry to Australia (no exception for non citizen residents). Citizens attempting import - immediate arrest, no bail and if found guilty, minimum 10 year jail sentence. If found to have profited from earlier import -State seizure of all associated/resulting assets/profit plus costs. Importers found to have deliberatly/negligently imported any substance, without a permit and or containing a foreign animal/plant/pathogen, to potentially receive even harsher penalties including seizure of all assets, depending on level of criminality/negligence. Our unique environment has already been damaged by foreign organics - why continue to allow the invasion? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spenaroo Posted March 4 Share Posted March 4 You cant travel to the USA without showing the visa at check-in. should be the same for travel to Australia - must make a customs decleration at check-in Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrendAn Posted March 4 Share Posted March 4 5 hours ago, facthunter said: What about the people who try to sneak processed meats etc through customs and resist any search on a "restriction of my freedoms" etc? Mabe you have it ar$e about. Nev Anyone who refuses a search would not be allowed entry to the country would they. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
facthunter Posted March 4 Share Posted March 4 Campaign against " having" to be searched. Nev Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrendAn Posted March 4 Share Posted March 4 19 minutes ago, facthunter said: Campaign against " having" to be searched. Nev I am not sure I follow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
facthunter Posted March 4 Share Posted March 4 Lots of people don't want any restrictions to apply to them. Nev 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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