Disclaimer: I'm not an ag-pilot, and know very little about the industry. So please forgive me if I sound ignorant. But I do know that ag work is one-of-a-kind and requires a special kind of pilot, and that its as well developed and indoctrinated in this corner of the world as anywhere else in the world.
But, 170 hours a month!!! I'm flabbergasted. I'm not flabbergasted that pilots are capable of doing that many hours a month, but that they are allowed to. And also that they are allowed to fly for 14 consecutive days.
I fly small aircraft charter and on a good month might fly 50 hours, which is a full time job (although half of my job involves flying a desk in ops as well). I can imagine flying 100 hours a month if that was all I did - ie jump in the aeroplane and go, and then staight to the pub or wherever after landing. But surely ag pilots must have taxing duties other than the flying? And 14 hours flying allowed in a day!? I can imagine doing that one off. Perhaps twice in 2 days - but then how would you feel on day 3? Does that mean that an ag pilot is allowed is allowed to fly 12 14-hour days consecutively (12 x 14 = 168) and then 2 hours the next day (and then have to stay on the ground for 15 days)?
I'm not saying that that is likely to happen, as I'm sure ag pilots know what is safe and what isn't, but its the fact that it is legally allowed to happen that astounds me.
Again, I fly in a very different industry and don't know well the demands and limitations of ag-flying, but I can't help wondering why the regulations for flight and duty time are so much different to other categories of flying. I guess a lot of self-regulation occurs in the industry, which may be a good thing, but if a pilot is allowed to fly 170 hours in 28 days (or in fact even in 13 days!) then doesn't that leave open the possibilty of dangerous excesses in ag flying?