National Agricultural Aviation Association launches a public outreach campaign to raise awareness about the worrisome effects of wind energy development on agriculture and aviation. Meteorological Evaluation Towers (METs) are used to measure an area’s suitability for a wind farm. These towers can be erected very quickly and often did not need to be marked, making them a major hazard for low-altitude aviators.
From 2008 to 2018, there were 22 agricultural aviation accidents from collisions with METs, communication towers, towers supporting power lines and wind turbines, which resulted in nine fatalities. For all of general aviation, 40 tower-related accidents and incidents resulted in 36 fatalities over the same 11-year period.