Details
06/24/2014
Ground Crew
KOVA of Ohio
Background
KOVA of Ohio has been committed to Aerial Application of corn, soybeans, and wheat since 2007. In 2007, KOVA of Ohio partnered with Syngenta, and had Evergreen Flying Service, out of Rayville, Louisiana, come in and fly over 14,000 acres of corn with a fungicide, with two "fixed wing" Air Tractors. Thus began not only KOVA's involvement with Aerial Application, but, their commitment to growers in Ohio to provide timely Aerial Application of corn, soybeans, and wheat.
KOVA of Ohio is now partnered with Southern Illinois Custom Aerial, out of Carmi, Illinois, for the "fixed wing" airplanes, and Coastal Air Service, Inc. out of Panama City, Florida, for the "rotary wing", helicopters.
Ground Crew- Job Description
KOVA of Ohio is responsible for the planning phase, logistics, and implementation of Aerial Application. Both SICA, and Coastal Air Service, Inc. utilize a computer software program with Agrismartis, called FlightPlan. FlightPlan is set up to allow retailers to map grower’s fields, using Shapefiles, and then enroll grower fields that will be sprayed at a later date. KOVA of Ohio employs personnel to help with this input, and manage this information in FlightPlan. These personnel have commonly been referred to as "Ground Crew." The Ground Crew personnel work at the airports where the "fixed wing" aircraft are located, and also go with the helicopter to the location that is being sprayed. Responsibilities include the following:
- Creating a daily itinerary. This includes creating what we call a “batch” which is choosing available locations to be sprayed and in what order they will be sprayed. The itinerary will be prepared the day before and given to each member of the crew.
- Leading the fuel and product truck to locations and finding landing zones (LZ’s) for the truck to park. You will drive a truck with a trailer that has all of the products you will need for the day.
- Communicating which products are to be applied on certain fields.
- Keeping track of landing and take-off times.
- Ensuring the correct amount of product is available for the day.
Ground Crew is paid an hourly rate, and re-imbursed for expenses, including mileage.
Qualified candidates please contact Chris Weed directly - email: chrisw@ekova.com or phone: 513.292.9504.
