The world of precision agriculture got a bit more exciting this week with the finalized operational rules for routine commercial use of small unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), or “drones," from the Department of Transportation’s Federal Aviation Administration.

Drones are not a silver bullet to solve all problems facing agriculture, but it does give farmers another tool in their toolbox that they can utilize and plenty of excitement is around the new process. Some estimate that as much as 80% of the UAS use could be within the agriculture sector.

Chip Bowling, president of the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA), said he’s pleased that FAA recognized the important commercial applications for UAS technology and has created rules that will put the technology in farmers’ hands.

“As with any technology, unmanned aerial systems can make farms safer, more efficient and more sustainable. That’s good for farmers, consumers and the environment,” Bowling said.

NCGA has taken a leadership role on this issue from the beginning, working with the UAS industry, federal regulators and others to encourage reasonable rules and regulations for this technology.

“These are commonsense rules that create a culture of safety and responsibility while ensuring farmers have the access, tools and training to take full advantage of UAS technology,” Bowling added.

According to industry estimates, the rule could generate more than $82 billion for the U.S. economy and create more than 100,000 new jobs over the next 10 years.

The new rule, which takes effect in late August, offers safety regulations for unmanned aircraft drones weighing less than 55 lb. that are conducting non-hobby operations.

The rule’s provisions are designed to minimize risks to other aircraft and people and property on the ground. The regulations require pilots to keep an unmanned aircraft within visual line of sight, one of the most concerning limitations of the updated rule.

Robert Blair, Idaho wheat farmer and vice president of agriculture for Measure, a drone service company, testified in a House Agriculture Committee hearing that current technology can allow for UAS to safely fly beyond the line of sight. He hopes regulations will someday be able to isolate and locate areas where out-of-sight flights can take place for commercial and research situations.

RJ Karney, director of congressional relations at the American Farm Bureau Federation, added FAA does have a waiver process farmers can go thru to allow them to fly out of sight. Karney noted farmers and ranchers can build their case on the safety for the agricultural industry and potentially make changes in the months or years ahead in updated regulations. FAA will make an online portal available to apply for these waivers in the months ahead.

Operations are allowed during daylight and during twilight if the drone has anti-collision lights. The new regulations also address height and speed restrictions and other operational limits, such as prohibiting flights over unprotected people on the ground who aren’t directly participating in the UAS operation.

Karney said the requirement to remove anyone who is not geared towards the flight operation could cause farms to have to pull their staff if they’re in the fields, whereas they could effectively tell smaller staffs that flight is going to be taking place rather than fully removing them from the fie+ld.

The rule places a maximum altitude of 400 feet above ground level, which is actually lower than the 500 ft. limit first proposed. Karney said the ag industry had actually wanted to see it more than 500 ft. since in rural areas this would allow for less overlap for cameras.

“With this new rule, we are taking a careful and deliberate approach that balances the need to deploy this new technology with the FAA’s mission to protect public safety, but this is just our first step. We’re already working on additional rules that will expand the range of operations,” FAA administrator Michael Huerta said.

Under the final rule, the person actually flying the drone must be at least 16 years old and have a remote pilot certificate with a small UAS rating or be directly supervised by someone with such a certificate.

To qualify for a remote pilot certificate, an individual must either pass an initial aeronautical knowledge test at an FAA-approved knowledge testing center or have an existing non-student Part 61 pilot certificate. If qualifying under the latter provision, a pilot must have completed a flight review in the previous 24 months and must take a UAS online training course provided by FAA. The Transportation Security Administration will conduct a security background check of all remote pilot applications prior to issuance of a certificate.

Operators are responsible for ensuring that a drone is safe before flying it, but FAA is not requiring small UAS to comply with current agency airworthiness standards or aircraft certification. Instead, the remote pilot will simply have to perform a preflight visual and operational check of the small UAS to ensure that safety-pertinent systems are functioning property.  This includes checking the communications link between the control station and the UAS.

Although the new rule does not specifically deal with privacy issues regarding the use of drones and FAA does not regulate how UAS gather data on people or property, FAA is acting to address privacy considerations in this area. The agency strongly encourages all UAS pilots to check local and state laws before gathering information through remote sensing technology or photography.