The paperwork behind every pass.
Putting a chemical on a field from an aircraft is regulated federally and by the state. This is the whole chain, in the order you obtain it. It is the same list whether you hire us or fly your own, and worth knowing before anyone flies over your ground.
Part 107
The pilotFAA remote pilot certification. Every commercial drone pilot needs it to fly under the FAA rules at Part 107. This is where we know we have a pilot.
Part 137
The droneAgricultural aircraft operations. This has more to do with the aircraft than the pilot. It covers the bigger drones, beyond 55 pounds and beyond what Part 107 allows, and gets them registered with the FAA and accepted as working aircraft.
Part 61 and Part 91
The waiversThe FAA looks at these big drones and treats them essentially as helicopters. So we obtain a waiver of Part 61 and a Part 91 waiver, which let us fly them as uncrewed aircraft. John's guess is that the FAA will simplify this at some point. For now it is part of the job.
PA core pesticide test
The stateTo apply pesticide in Pennsylvania you go through the Department of Agriculture, study the material and take the core test for pesticide application.
Aerial applicator test
The stateThe aerial applicator category test, on top of the core test. Both are required before any drone farming with chemicals. Category number to confirm
Compliance as a service
Most people who want to fly their own ground get stuck here, not at the controller. The chain has five links, three agencies and a waiver process that treats a drone like a helicopter. We have been through it and we teach it as part of training. We can also walk an operation through it directly.
Ask us which of these a given job needs and who is holding it. We will tell you straight, before we quote anything.