FAA Approves Hylio Commercial Agricultural ‘Drone Swarm’ Exemption

Hylio asked for the exemption to help it make drone aerial application economically viable. Under drone rules, a commercial drone has to have a remote pilot and spotter, but the exemption allows the same crew to run as many as three drones at once and spray almost as quickly as a tractor can.

Each drone carries 15 gallons of spray and the downwash from the eight rotors ensures good coverage. Proprietary software allows them to operate autonomously and fly a variety of patterns.

At about $80,000 each, the drones are much less expensive than the large tractors used in industrial farming operations, use a fraction of the energy and don’t compact the soil.

Of course, Hylio is already looking at other uses for the tripled-up drones. As individual aircraft, the drones have been used for everything from seeding wildfire areas to seeding pods with clams for aquatic farmers and are expected to bring similar efficiencies.

Editor’s Note: This article first appeared on AVweb.