What you can do with a drone right now?

Let’s face it: Drones represent some very innovative technology; it’s neat to see farming from a different perspective; and they’re also simply fun to fly.

“I’ve been known to get sunburnt tonsils from a day of watching them in the sky,” said Kevin Price, Executive VP of Research and technology development, AgPixel/RoboFlight Systems, at his drone session at InfoAg.

Plenty of farmers are flying drones for recreation on their farms right now. The drone sessions at InfoAg were packed to the brim with attendees, and lots of people shot their hands up when asked if they were operating a drone on their farms now.

Many are capturing aerial footage during planting, harvest and more, and sharing that on YouTube and other social media channels. (Search “YouTube drones” on FarmIndustryNews.com for a roundup of those called “Viewing farming from a new angle for 2014.”) Colby notes that this alone – farmers sharing recreational drone footage on social media – is in itself a great way for growers to share the story of agriculture with a broad audience.

But if you have one or plan to get one soon, you have to know the rules. If flying recreationally, adhere to the rules established like keeping your aircraft within visual line of site, flying no higher than 400 feet and avoiding adverse weather conditions. Visit http://knowbeforeyoufly.org/for-recreational-users for a full list and consider joining an organization like the Academy of Model Aeronautics, which promotes safe flying of small aircraft.

Flying commercially is a different story and right now requires a Section 333 exemption from FAA.

Peggy Hall, assistant professor, field specialist, agricultural & resource law, said using your sUAS to check on your crops for scouting and identifying problems – that’s a business purpose, in a recent sUAS webinar hosted by the National Ag Law Center.

FAA has issued nearly 1,000 333 exemptions so far, and until they release the official rules of operation for sUAS for commercial purposes next year, flying one for business, and making money off of it in any way, requires that exemption.

The future looks bright for drone use in agriculture, but giving the technology a try for fun right now is also a reality. And the conversation doesn’t end here: Visit farmindustrynews.com for even more coverage, an interactive quiz to test your drone knowledge, galleries, blogs and more around the topic.