Spraying Work wanted 2021

[AgPilot206]

Hi guys,
New here but thought this looked like a good place to ask about finding some agricultural/spraying work for the 2021 season.
I’m from New Zealand but would love to come over to Canada and do some spraying/spreading as a working holiday for a couple years.
I gather COVID hasn’t been kind to anyone but I was hoping, so long as border restrictions ease, that there may be a company out there looking for an experienced guy next year.
Could any one please point me the direction of someone potentially looking or some insight to that part of the industry at the moment,
Thanks in advance!

[Wasp_Jr]

Best place to go would be on the Canadian Aerial Applicators Association website and place an add in the classifieds. There is a shortage of experienced ag pilots in Canada generally so if you have some experience and aren’t picky who you work for you should be able to find a seat with out much trouble.

[AgPilot206]

Thanks Wasp_Jr, will do. Appreciate the tip!

[ShawnR]

Are there certifications or specialized training courses for aerial spraying? It sounds like an interesting job. Is it something done only at a certain point in the growing season ie spring, mid season? What is the smallest plot that would be sprayed? I live in a bit of an agricultural area but have never heard of it being done, locally, so I am thinking that our farms may not have suitable crops or are just too small?

I would suspect the only way to get into it is to get hired by a company but the Pawnee and Tractor are single seaters, as far as I know, so how is the training done? Are there other aircraft used for it? I guess, as I sit here and type, that the training could be done in any tandem seater aircraft like a PA18....? Just maybe not so much of the actual spraying? I think it is a small market that does not get much media coverage, at least, where I live.

Just curious.
Thanks
Shawn

[co-joe]

There's an outfit in Yorkton SK that has a spray course. When I met them years ago, they ran King Air 200's doing medevac and mine charter work, which allowed them to keep pilots employed all winter, but the spray part of the operation was of course seasonal. They don't seem to be the same company, so possibly the business are split, or possibly not part of one organization any more. The spray course is 18 grand, so you'd really have to be driven to do that for more than a couple seasons imho, but it sounds like a lot of fun.

[ShawnR]

Sorry Co-Joe. I missed your answer. Thanks for replying.

I did contact the Aerial Sprayers association and they gave me some names of companies that do the training. Yes, 18K. There are a couple of schools (MB and SK) The person replying to me did say that they are "always looking for pilots " ... so maybe something of interest to younger pilots with larger aspirations than myself. I was wondering if there is a market in my area for such an operation but I don't think we have large enough fields and enough work to justify the cost of the training, let alone a spray plane.

Thanks
Cheers,
Shawn