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Slow & Low:
Crop-dusting in the Southwest
PHOTO COURTESY OF CLIFF DAVIS
Cliff Davis flies low and steadies his prop plane while passing over a large field of cotton, spraying for pests.
By Cliff Davis flight was over, Mr. Hunt asked me, “Well underpowered, but even so I was thrilled.
Coach, you want to learn how to fly?” After flying my first field of cotton, Jerry
Ihad always been – what’s the word? – met me on the ground. “Coach,” he said,
enthralled with flying. Unfortunately, “…I think so,” I replied. I was nauseated, looking at the many green leaves caught
I was on the ground, so I began looking but was also now hooked on flying. up in my landing gear, “seems you were
for a way to correct this problem. I began a little too close to the cotton.” Eventu-
by inquiring with the large airports, Raising a family and coaching full time, ally, I graduated onto larger, more stable
where I discovered that the traditional I knew that the reaching the 200 hours aircraft.
ways of learning to fly would take a long required for a commercial pilot’s license
time and a lot of money. Deciding to take would be a stretch. Still, I wanted to learn LEARNING THE TRICKS
a less traditional route, I went out to a to fly. I began working at the airport, OF THE TRADE
small airport outside Portland, Texas. filling up airplanes on weekends and
The airport was owned by a man named slowly building up my required hours. It Lack of observation and failure to respect
Mr. Hunt, a World War II squadron com- took several years, but eventually I had the limitations of your aircraft will lead to
mander with a handlebar mustache and enough hours under my belt to take my accidents. A pilot should always be aware
eyes that could penetrate your soul. commercial exams. I passed my written, of his environment. Know obstacles in the
oral and flying exams and voila, I was a field. Where to stop and when to change
“Mr. Hunt,” I said, “I’d like to learn how pilot for hire. speed could shift on a knife’s edge, so keep
to fly.” your focus a quarter mile ahead of the
By the time I was licensed, Mr. Hunt’s son plane. Have a plan - when you get close
Mr. Hunt stared at me, then turned to his Jerry was running the business. After a to those wires, know if you’re going over
crop-dusting pilot, Kenneth. brief test flight, Jerry declared, “You’ll or under.
do fine!” and informed me I could begin
“Kenneth,” he said, “see if Coach Davis the next day. Cars on the highway next to the field were
wants to learn how to fly.” another hazard. The car would be going 60
The old timers said that those first hours mph and your plane would be going 120
We went outside and crawled into a Super flying were the most difficult, as you’re mph, so if the highway was in your line of
Cub. For the next 45 minutes, we flew. We learning what the aircraft can and can- sight you needed to figure out where that
flew under wires and over wires, flew in not do. I started in a crop-dusting plane driver would be and when. Of course, by
loops, chandelles and pushed the plane to called a Pawnee. It was a small plane and
the limits of its aerobatic ability. When the ONLINE: SCTEXAS.ORG
78 | SUNRAYS JANUARY 2017
