News SINDAG – Brazilian Union of Agricultural Aviation Companies
© Castor Becker Júnior/SINDAG
Monthly Newsletter - Special Edition for the 50th NAAA Annual Convention
Graham Lavender (NAAA) and Júlio Kämpf (SINDAG) signed in June, during the Brazilian Agricultural Aviation Congress, the agreement between the two entities.
Nice flights for Brazil and the US
This year, for the first time, SINDAG will attend the NAAA’s Annual Convention. The delegation, led by President Júlio Kämpf, will arrive at Long Beach with five of the entity’s directors, returning a visit made in June by Graham Lavender, Secretary of the US Association, to the Brazilian Agricultural Aviation Congress held in the city of Botucatu, São Paulo State. During the Brazilian event, the two entities signed an agreement to discuss common issues between the two world’s largest agricultural aviation markets. According to the agreement, for the next five years the two enti-
ties will attend each other’s major events. “Many challenges faced by the agricultural aviation are similar across the whole continent, such as the quest for a good communication with the public and for policies that value the activity. It is a field in which ideas from both sides can be shared and even built together”, explains Kämpf.
The Brazilian officer also finds it remarkable that this agreement between the Brazilian and US agricultural aviation entities comes into being in the very year that celebrates NAAA’s 50th year and SINDAG’s 25th. “It’s a presage for a fruitful work”, he adds.
Eager anticipation 2017 meeting
© Graziele Dietrich/SINDAG
While SINDAG is in California for the NAAA Convention – in return to the visit of the US entity and to strengthen ties between both entities – there is a growing anticipation in Brazil about the magnitude of the next edition of its own agricultural aviation event. That’s because the SINDAG Congress, scheduled for August 8th to 10th, 2017, in
the city of Canela, Rio Grande do Sul state, will have a Latin American reach – with the participation of entities from Argentina, Uruguay, Chile, Paraguay, Colombia and other countries. Considering the likely attendance of NAAA, the prospects are for a really intercontinental interchange. “The agricultural aviation markets of each country do not compete with each other, and a scenario that might be much more cooperative than competitive is excellent for the discussion of ideas and solutions”, says President Júlio Kämpf.
for the in Brazil
The Brazilian Congress in 2017 will be called Latin American because four months ago SINDAG took on the command of the MERCOSUR and Latin American Agricultural Aviation Executive Committee, whose leadership is relayed annually among the agricultural aviation associations of Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay. By mutual agreement among the entities, during its tenure the local entity is to include in its own country’s convention a programming grid including foreign federations’ interests.
According to Gabriel Colle, SINDAG’s Executive Director, there are many interesting issues being now discussed within each agricultural aviation association. “In the case of the NAAA, for example, we have closely followed the discussions on the issue of drones and wind towers legislation, as well as the NAAAREF works.” There are in almost every country strong actions next to legislators and governmental bodies in search for fairer laws and taxes, in addition to a general attention to rules that, enacted without a proper technical debate might well disrupt the industry. As to Brazil, Colle mentions the Sustainable Agricultural Aviation Certification program (CAS – see more on page 8), an independent environmental quality label. “And ‘SINDAG on the Road’, where besides discussing demands from different regions of the country, we teach operators how to relate better with the society and press. In Argentina, there is the aeroencuentros effort, also to qualify local agricultural aviation companies. And some countries still have specific bee protection projects”, mentions the Brazilian officer.
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Focus on technological innovation and industry qualification With the MERCOSUR and Latin America SINDAG Congress still a bit more than eight months ahead, most of the almost 70 spaces of the commercial and technology fair are already reserved, and over 300 participants have already registered for the three days of lectures, debates and meetings. Agricultural aviation business people, pilots, technicians, researchers and authorities from a number of countries, in addition to the exhibitors, will attend an event focused on technological innovation and industry qualification, aiming to improve their efficacy and their safety – both operational and environmental. The program grid will also address strategies of communication with the society at large and initiatives to improve the industry’s appreciation, as well as reports about its partnership with universities and the chemical industry. For equipment and technology suppliers, the Brazilian event will once again confirm its importance as a showcase for their products. “The Latin American market is quite important for us and, in that context, the SINDAG Congress is strategic for our company,” said Yves Houde, a representative of Pratt & Whitney Canada during the event last June, in Botucatu, São Paulo. At the same occasion, Jim Hirsch, President of Air Tractor (who travels every year to Brazil) confirmed since now his presence in Canela, in 2017. “I hope to be able to take with me the new AT-502 XP model”, he commented, referring to the latest plane of his Olney, Texas based company.
Canela is in one of the most beautiful and picturesque tourist destinations of southern Brazil. The city stays in a mountainous region with a number of tour options through beautiful natural landscapes, standing out as well by its fine restaurants and, along with the nearby city of Gramado, by its small chocolate factories (some with thematic facilities for both adults and children), museums and other attractions. It’s worthwhile to remind that August is a winter month in the region, what gives a special refinement to its gastronomy and exhibits those special colors proper of a mountain climate. All of these tour options will be an additional attraction for those who may take their family or just have some time available to relax before or after the agricultural aviation Congress. ld Museum)
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As in the recent years, the SINDAG Congress 2017 will be held in an airfield, where a structure with large tents next to a hangar will be put up, totaling over 3,500 square meters of covered area. This in addition to outside spaces where planes are to be exhibited. “In addition to the aerodrome environment making the audience feel at home, the framework facilitates flight demonstrations of agricultural aircraft, another feature that is repeated every year,” explains Director Gabriel Colle. It’s also interesting to point out that this edition of the Congress will occur in the State where the Brazilian agricultural aviation was born, and just 130 kilometers from SINDAG headquarters.
Success was the name of the The SINDAG Congress held last June in Botucatu, SĂŁo Paulo, received over 1,500 visitors in three days. The event included 21 technical lectures and registered a record presence of visitors to its 52 booths exhibiting equipment and technologies, not to mention the demonstrations made by agricultural planes and aerial acrobatic shows. The event also drew a large number of students, from elementary grades up to medium level and university agriculture and engineering students, encouraged to learn more about the agricultural aviation industry. One of the event highlights was the
presence of unmanned aircraft used on crop control activities and as a complement to the agricultural aircraft tasks – SINDAG has brought this sector close to the people in order to jointly discuss the regulation of unmanned aerial vehicles (drones), which in Brazil has not yet been completed. As to strategies: In addition to its researches and efforts for better policies for the industry, SINDAG also presented its strategic planning for up to 2020, which intends to rally the whole aviation-linked chain (from chemical industries to spare parts suppliers) in actions in defense of the industry.
2016 meeting
www.cas-online.org.br
Near 60% of the fleet already carry the environmental quality seal
After the first three years of operation of the Sustainable Agricultural Aviation Certification program (CAS), 58% of the agricultural aviation companies have already adopted the industry’s first environmental quality seal in Brazil. The CAS was born of a demand of the industry itself to qualify even more its operations and to give an additional assurance to the people about the operators’ efforts to preserve the country’s natural resources. This fully independent program is maintained by the Foundation of Agricultural and Forestry Research (FEPAF) and coordinated by three public universities – the São Paulo State University (UNESP), the Federal University of Lavras (UFLA) and the Federal University of Uberlândia (UFU), both in the Minas Gerais state. The quality seal is awarded at three levels, ranging from the documentation and updating of all legal obligations to courses on operations and equipment adjustments, involving also visits to the companies to check if the equipment conditions and use, as well as the techniques used are in accordance with the program rules.
Celebrating history The National Agricultural Aviation Week will take place from August 13th to 19th, 2017, when the Brazilian agricultural aviation will celebrate its 70th anniversary. All to remember the first agricultural flight in the country, in 1947, in the city of Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul State. That year, clouds of locusts were decimating the region crops until, on August 19th, the agronomist Leoncio de Andrade Fontelles, an agent of the Ministry of Agriculture, and pilot Clovis Candiota flew a Muniz M-9 biplane from the Pelotas Aero Club to apply pesticide on the insects, using a makeshift sprinkling system. The date came to be celebrated as the Agricultural Aviation National Day, and Candiota was named the Patron of the Brazilian agricultural aviation industry.
SINDAG adheres to the UN Global Compact Since last October, SINDAG became a member of the United Nations Global Compact. Upon that, the agricultural aviation Union committed to carrying out actions to promote the ten principles the UN set up for the areas of human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption. SINDAG’s actions are to be carried out aiming to engage its stakeholders – agricultural aviation operators, pilots, farmers, partnering entities and others – in the UN ten principles. Reports on the actions developed are to be submitted to the UN every other year. See more at: www.unglobalcompact.org