Drone swarms for farming approved by FAA

Farming drone company Hylio has received Federal Aviation Administration approval to deploy up to three drones weighing more than 55 pounds simultaneously with a single pilot and without visual observers, which also allows for nighttime operations.

The company said the approval lays the groundwork for customers and other operators to file for the same permissions.

Hylio is believed to be the first company in the U.S. to receive such approval, a decision Hylio called a monumental achievement that sets an important precedent for the commercial unmanned aircraft system (UAS) industry.

“This is a critical step forward in making UAS a viable option for even the largest-scale farming operations,” said Arthur Erickson, Hylio co-founder and CEO. “I am proud that Hylio has made history, forever changing farming in America for the better by drastically multiplying productivity for spraying and spreading applications, while simultaneously offering a solution for the increasing labor shortages in agriculture.”

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