Air Tractor Inc

Air Tractor Top Notch Operator:

Chuck Holzwarth Flying Service

Chuck Holzwarth
Virden, Illinois

Chuck Holzwarth

AT: How did you get your start in aerial application?

Holzwarth: I was born and raised on a farm, so I grew up with a love for agriculture  But it was not until the late 1980s when I started taking flying lessons.  I learned to fly at a local rural airport that had an aerial application business in operation.  So, I got to know the pilots and once I started flying with them, I was hooked.  My first spray plane was 180 hp Pawnee.  Later, I flew a variety of airplanes, including a Cessna, Ag Truck, a Snow S2-C and an Air Tractor AT-301 and AT-401.

AT: What is your operation like today?

Holzwarth: We currently use all turbine-powered Air Tractors to do all of our work throughout the season.  In addition to myself, there are three other pilots that help me handle the workload, and more pilots come from all over the U.S. to lend a hand when times get very busy.  Chuck Holzwarth Flying Service started out as a family business.  My wife Linda has always managed the office, while my sons Dustin and Brett handle most of the ground operations.  With every year that we grow, our crew must also grow, so we have many other helpful hands that make our operation function when times are busy.

AT: What about precision application?

Holzwarth: GPS technology has provided us with the capability of applying chemical in a more precise way than ever before.  Through various data recording equipment and mapping technology, we can now print out “as applied” maps that show fields that we have sprayed.  Our customers can be confident that they are being provided with a quality, professional service because they can actually see how accurately the chemical has been applied to their fields.

AT: What kind of crops do you spray?

Holzwarth: In Central Illinois, the main crop is corn.  But, we also spray a variety of other crops like green beans, soybeans, wheat and alfalfa.  The early portion of our season starts in April with wheat and alfalfa spraying.  Then, by the end of June when pollination starts, we get very busy with orders for corn and soybeans.  Then our season usually comes to a close in late September with seeding work

AT: What are things like at the height of your season?

Holzwarth: For the last three years we’ve had anywhere from eight to ten airplanes flying out of our two locations.  We commission other operators and pilots to keep everything moving during those very intense three or four weeks at the pinnacle of our season. 

Left to right: Pilots Rick Calhoun, Brandon Flexsenhar, Roger Bock and Chuck Holzwarth

AT: What do your clients expect from an aerial applicator?

Holzwarth: Clients’ expectations are getting more sophisticated every year.  Technology has become crucial to the livelihood of our business.  Now we have invested in technology that has allowed us to provide our clients with detailed mapping of each application that we have completed.  Our clients seem to respond positively to the various programs we use for our airplanes, our spray orders, and our billing process.  We continually work to educate our clients on how the aerial application business works.

AT: Why do you fly Air Tractors?

Holzwarth: Before investing in Air Tractors, I flew a variety of other spray planes, but none of them measured up tot the quality and reliability of an Air Tractor.  If I ever do run into a problem with one of my airplanes, I know I will be able to count on the service representatives from Air Tractor for a solution.  Sometimes you cannot put a price on a peace of mind, especially when you are self-employed.  Despite all of this, however, Air Tractors are really a lot of fun to fly.  They are very efficient airplanes that can do a great amount of work in a short amount of time.

AT: Maintenance on these Air Tractors?  How is it?

Holzwarth: In comparison to some of the other spray planes I have owned, the Air Tractors are very easy to care for.  We perform routine maintenance throughout the year.  In the winter months we do our annual inspections and any other maintenance issues that are required.

AT: How have things changed since you started in this business?

Holzwarth: Our first spray plane was a 180-HP Pawnee costing $16,000.  Today, spray planes cost up to $1 million.  Then, people or auto flaggers were used to mark the spray pattern.  Now, we use high-tech GPS guidance systems with flow controllers on board the airplane.  The office work has gone from all hand-written work orders and making copies of plats for the spray job to all of our work done on computers.  Each year we deal with the urban sprawl -- non-agricultural people moving into the country in the middle of production agriculture.  In the early 90s, this was a six months a year business.  Today we are busy year-round preparing for our next spray season.  We work on pricing dealing with chemicals, customer meetings, aircraft maintenance and working on our office system for a smoother season.  We learn from the previous season.  We make changes and move on to the next season.