FAQ
Straight answers
The questions farmers actually ask before hiring a drone — costs, licensing, drift, small fields, and proof of work.
- How much does drone spraying cost?
- Standard crop spraying runs $12–$15 per acre, with $12/acre as our typical rate for straightforward jobs. Jobs under 30 acres add a $150 mobilization fee, and season contracts covering multiple passes save 10%. We publish our full rate card on the pricing page — we're the only drone operator in Alabama that does.
- Are you licensed and insured?
- Yes. Operations are flown by an FAA-licensed private pilot holding a Part 107 remote pilot certificate and a Master's degree in Uncrewed & Autonomous Aircraft Systems. Commercial pesticide application is conducted under FAA Part 137 agricultural aircraft operating authority and an Alabama Department of Agriculture & Industries commercial pesticide applicator license (aerial category), with $1M+ liability insurance. Ask us for current license numbers any time — a legitimate operator will always show you.
- Can you work small, hilly, or wet fields?
- That's exactly what we're built for. The drone needs no field entry at all — zero ruts, zero compaction, zero waiting on the ground to dry. LiDAR terrain-following holds spray height on slopes that would sideline a ground rig, and there's no minimum field size a crop duster would need to justify a pass. Small, broken, tree-lined fields are our home turf.
- Who supplies the chemical?
- Either works. Most customers supply their own product from their usual co-op or dealer, and we handle mixing and application per the label. We can also coordinate product through local suppliers if you'd rather make one call. Every application follows the EPA label: carrier volume, droplet size, wind limits, and buffer zones.
- What about drift near my property lines, pond, or neighbors?
- Drift management is where drones beat every alternative. Droplet size adjusts from 50 to 500 microns to match label requirements, application height stays low and consistent, and RTK GPS holds the aircraft within ±10 cm — so boundaries, ponds, gardens, and houses get clean, documented setbacks. We log wind speed, temperature, and humidity at application time for every job, and we don't fly outside label conditions. Period.
- How fast can you cover my acreage?
- The AGRAS T100 covers up to 150 acres per hour at standard application volumes — among the fastest single-drone platforms in the country. A typical 80-acre pasture job is done in under an hour of flight time. Most jobs inside our service area are scheduled within days, and weather-critical windows (like armyworm outbreaks) get priority.
- What is NDVI mapping, and what does it actually tell me?
- NDVI imagery measures how strongly your crop reflects near-infrared light — healthy plants reflect a lot, stressed plants don't. A 20-minute flight produces a color-coded vigor map of the whole field showing poor emergence, disease pressure, nutrient deficiency, and water stress — often two to three weeks before symptoms are visible to the eye. It turns 'walk the field and hope you find it' into 'here's the problem, here's exactly where.'
- Do you serve my county?
- Our everyday zone covers St. Clair, Calhoun, Etowah, Cleburne, Talladega, Coosa, Jefferson, Shelby, and Blount counties from our Pell City base — but that's a service area, not a fence. For the right acreage we travel well beyond it; Huntsville isn't out of the question. Ask, and we'll give you a straight answer on the trip.
- How do I know the job was done right?
- Every application comes with a GPS-verified coverage map showing exactly where the aircraft flew and applied — swath by swath, timestamped. It's proof of service for your records, your landlord, or your crop insurance. No ground rig or crop duster hands you that.
- Drone vs. crop duster vs. ground rig — when does the drone win?
- Ground rigs win on huge, flat, dry, open fields — that's not most of east-central Alabama. Crop dusters need long straight passes and won't touch small or obstructed fields. The drone wins on: fields under ~200 acres, wet ground, slopes, fields with trees/power lines/houses on the edges, standing crop you don't want tracked down, and precision work near sensitive boundaries. That describes most of the ground in our nine counties.
- When should I book?
- For planned work (fungicide programs, cover-crop seeding), two to three weeks ahead locks your window. For rescue treatments — armyworms don't make appointments — call and we'll get you on the schedule as fast as weather allows. Season contract customers get priority scheduling.
Question we didn't cover?
Ask the pilot directly — you'll get a straight answer, even if the answer is 'a drone isn't the right tool for that.'