Pyjama Pilots

A loose, unfiltered catch-up with the boys covering everything from flying over Christmas with medevac runs and life in the cockpit. What starts as casual chat quickly turns into a string of “whoopsie daisy” moments—ground loops, rough strips, turbulence hits, and the kind of decisions that seem like a good idea… until they aren’t.
There’s talk of taildraggers vs nose-draggers, operating into sketchy strips, and how quickly things can unravel when conditions, experience, and instinct don’t quite line up. It’s equal parts storytelling, lessons learned the hard way, and classic pilot banter.
If you’ve spent time around aircraft—or just enjoy hearing how things go wrong and right again—this one hits home.

In this episode, Jimbo, Hoodie and Pedro dive into the debate around modern spreading tech — variable rate systems, cockpit mapping, and whether it’s actually improving outcomes or just adding cost and complexity for farmers. Is the technology genuinely helping pilots and cockies get better results, or is it a half-finished system that’s shifting risk and responsibility onto the people flying the job?
The conversation drifts (as it always does) through real stories from the cockpit — dodgy fert density, spread tests, long days in Gizzy, and the reality of life as an ag pilot when the weather, the boss, and the cockies all have different expectations.
Along the way the lads also get into:
Why constant-rate spreading actually is an improvement

When automation helps… and when it becomes a distraction

The pressure pilots face when new systems don’t work as advertised

Early mornings, endless seasons, and the micro-climates every ag pilot learns to read

Electric aircraft experiments, drones, and where ag aviation might be heading next

It’s part industry discussion, part hangar-talk, and part therapy session for anyone who’s ever worked in agricultural aviation.
Expect strong opinions, plenty of laughs, and the usual sideways detours into aircraft, war stories, and the realities of flying for a living.

In this episode the lads cover everything from the serious to the downright ridiculous. Pedro debriefs the Ag Aviation Conference — mental-health panels, medical reforms, and why pilots still fear losing their medicals — before the crew dives into training pathways, turbines vs pistons, and the future of the industry.
Then the gold starts flowing: wild strip operations, tailwinds that make no sense, hybrid-electric ag-planes, and farmers doing farmers things.
And topping it all off: the Mesopotamia Station story — two blokes accidentally sprinting 80 km/h down a strip hanging onto a moving aircraft .
A mix of industry insight, pure chaos, and some of the funniest rural aviation yarns you’ll hear.

**Special shout out to those who know Pedro and/or Hoodie and are asking what I'm up to! ;-D

The boys are back on the mics and straight into it. Jimbo’s been ping-ponging between NZ and Aussie, Hoodie’s barely alive after Pearl Jam, and Pedro is halfway between a half-marathon and a meltdown.
This episode somehow manages to cover:
• the “10 accidents in 10 weeks” saga• why pilots aren’t always the problem (management... hello)• flap checks, hopper pops, and learning the hard way• fake IDs, tequila disasters, and legendary hangovers• new composite firebombers that look like something out of Planes• ATPLs no one wants to pay for• floats, survey flying, and CFG headaches• plus the usual roasting, reminiscing, and barely-appropriate stories

It’s chaotic, honest, aviation-nerdy, and very on-brand.
Grab a drink (but not raro-tequila), settle in, and enjoy the ride.

I sat down with Richmond “Ditch” Harding, one of the most respected ag pilots around, to talk about his decades in the seat - from the early Tiger Moth days right through to the modern era of agricultural aviation.
Ditch has a wealth of stories, sharp insights, and that trademark mix of honesty and humour you only get from a bloke who’s seen it all. We got into how he started out, the aircraft he’s flown, the changes he’s watched unfold, and what’s stayed the same through it all - the people, the passion, and the sheer love of flying.