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<br />~ <br />I <br />I <br />I <br /> <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br /> <br />Crop-hail damage leading up to wheat harvest this year was distributed in a dramatically <br />different manner than most other years, First, we had significantly fewer operational days in <br />June, typically a heavy month for seeding, so our flare supply ended up lasting throughout the rest <br />of the season, September was a heavy month for damage compared to other seasons and most of <br />the remaining flares on hand were used by the season's end on Sept 20th. <br /> <br />The Cheyenne II turboprop aircraft, acquired in 1999, was equipped with a dry ice <br />dispenser capable of canying nearly 200 pounds of dry ice which is dispensed at 5 pounds per <br />minute, Reaction time getting to and from storm regions is relatively fast and provides a <br />capability of being able to remain aloft for several hours, normally long enough to dispense the <br />entire seeding load carried, Cloud-top seeding flight paths are either through the tops of newly <br />developing clouds close to the parent storm, or through new storm growth on multi-celled lines <br />(see Figure 2 on page 9). <br /> <br />The design of the WKWMP is similar to other seeding programs of its kind: The launch <br />decision is made by the meteorologist who then guides the pilots to the desired seeding locations <br />during operations, Once a pilot arrives at a target-storm, he confers with the meteorologist and a <br />seeding decision is made, Unless an aircraft runs into emergencies, runs out of seeding agent or is <br />low on fuel, flight termination decisions are made by the meteorologist WKWMP pilots are <br />well-trained and most have received one, or more, complete seasons of seeding experience as an <br />intern prior to flying as pilot-in-command. Communications, often being relayed through other <br />aircraft, and teamwork in general have worked well on the WKWMP allowing us to operate <br />effectively and successfully, <br /> <br />D, ADMINISTRATIVE AND PUBLIC RELATIONS <br /> <br />There is a seemingly endless stream of paperwork that needs to be dealt with during the <br />season, After a seeding or observation flight, pilots enter their flight data into their personal <br />computer which carries a pre-loaded form in Excel spreadsheet format and a special program to <br />download GPS data from so that flight track information and waypoints of significance also can <br />be sent Then, these are e-mailed to the field headquarters for printout and data recording, <br />Required monthly summaries of seeding information are sent to WKGMD#l, the Kansas Water <br />Office, the Dodge City Office ofthe National Weather Service (not required) and to the Colorado <br />Water Conservation Board, if there is seeding done in Colorado. A monthly seeding summary is <br />sent in at the end of the season to the National Oceanic and Oceanographic Administration <br />(Appendix D, page 56). From time to time numerous other responses are needed, answering <br />public inquiries, researching data, etc, <br /> <br />Public relations provide a valuable contribution to this program, long-term. Without the <br />continuing effort to maintain favorable public attention, we run the risk that the WKWMP will <br />become marginalized. Occasionally, newly elected officials serving as commissioners may not be <br />as well- acquainted with our program or its results as some of their predecessors. In order to <br /> <br />22 <br />