| Aviation has been and will always be one of the | | | | paddies. |
| greatest breakthroughs in technological development. | | | | 6. Aerial Firefighting - Aerial firefighting started with |
| Aviation has been the backbone of many industries | | | | creative techniques. Water-filled wooden barrels and |
| and has played key roles too for many years. | | | | hoses were the first tools to fight wildfires from above. |
| 10. Broadcasting - Broadcasting journalism has | | | | Eventually, firefighters began dropping retardants such |
| benefited greatly from the aviation industry, with the | | | | as borate salts. Today, ammonium sulfate and |
| advent of the "news chopper," providing live traffic | | | | ammonium polyphosphate are emitted from large |
| updates to viewers and listeners. Stations employed | | | | airtankers. |
| helicopters to provide unique views of breaking news | | | | 5. Business - By the 1950s, business trips were a |
| events. | | | | major source of commercial air travel and airplanes |
| 9. Public Displays - Air racing has been a spectacular | | | | allowed professionals to have face-to-face meetings |
| and dangerous high-speed aerial display. Outside of air | | | | around the country, across the world and more often |
| racing, pilots also display their skills in aerobatic displays | | | | than was previously possible. Today, business/private |
| and military demos, like those held at the EAA | | | | aviation is growing and in-demand field. |
| AirVenture air show held annually at Oshkosh. These | | | | 4. Search and Rescue (SAR) - SAR efforts are |
| events also host experimental and home-made | | | | conducted around the world in urban areas, in |
| aircraft. | | | | mountains and forests and in oceans, on foot, in |
| 8. Aerial Photography - The military world made way | | | | aircraft, by ski patrols and even canines. When the |
| for aerial photography, capturing great bird's-eye-views. | | | | Coast Guard came to have its own aviation division, it |
| During the 20th century, cartographers, archaeologists | | | | pioneered the use of helicopters for SAR. SAR air |
| and film makers benefited from an eagle's-eye view. | | | | teams have played key roles in disaster relief efforts. |
| NASA utilized the Ikhana unmanned craft since 2007, | | | | 3. Military - Military forces were using aviation to track |
| photographing wildfires in California to aid firefighters. | | | | the movements of their enemies. War brought |
| 7. Agriculture - Hot-air balloons were also utilized in the | | | | urgency to the development of military aircraft such as |
| practice of top dressing. In the 1940s and 1950s, | | | | bombers and fighters, which played key roles in every |
| converted World War II aircraft became the standard | | | | war. |
| for crop dusting and farmers benefited on the | | | | 2. Emergency Medical Services - Aviation's one of the |
| low-flying planes. In the 1960s, the Piper Pawnee series | | | | most indispensable uses is the transportation of the |
| which was specially designed for agricultural work, | | | | sick and injured needing medical attention. Helicopters |
| came into general use. Today, ag planes come | | | | and fixed-wing aircraft alike are used in air emergency |
| equipped with GPS technologies and can cover more | | | | medical services. |
| acres per flight than ever before. But crop dusting | | | | 1. Air Travel - Air travel allowed access to even the |
| remains among the more dangerous aviation | | | | most remote parts of the earth and it became |
| professions. However, Yamaha's remote-controlled | | | | indispensable to connect and bridge the gap between |
| miniature helicopters solved this problem and | | | | people and places. |
| thousands are currently used in Japan to cultivate rice | | | | |