Commercial Fixed Wing
Air Traffic Control Fully Certified
Situational Awareness
ATC Issue All Types; Conflict Airborne Conflict; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy
General None Reported / Taken
Airport; Procedure
We were having a helicopter spray vegetation control through the airport authority. Runway 31 was closed to facilitate this operation. The helicopter was operating west of Runway 2L. We were briefed about the helicopter but he had never talked to anyone via radio or telephone and had previously been operating but currently was nowhere to be seen. My trainee and I had just taken the position and I was looking for the helicopter with my binoculars while the trainee was working a little spurt of traffic but could not find him. I first saw the helicopter as he was executing some kind of Split-S style crop dusting maneuver just adjacent to Runway 2L on what would have been a collision course with a regional jet. The regional jet immediately complained and said something to the effect that he was so surprised; he would have aborted the take off if he would have been able to. I would imagine that the pilot is filing a near mid-air as we speak. This spraying was problematic last year with similar; if less dramatic problems. My main recommendation [is to] get a tractor to apply this stuff. If the airport has to use a helicopter to apply it; close all adjoining runways no matter what the impact to the traffic flow.
[Narrative #2 contained no additional information.]
BNA Controller described a conflict between an Air Carrier departure and a helicopter spraying on the airport; the reporter noting similar problems in the past and suggesting tractor spraying applications and/or additional runway restrictions.