'This is going to be commonplace on the farm fields'

'This is going to be commonplace on the farm fields'

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'This is going to be commonplace on the farm fields'

It's mid-August and the corn is growing tall in one of Justin Miller's fields in southeast Nebraska. But Miller is also thinking about winter and planting a cover crop that can feed his cattle after harvest.

"So it adds to their forage when the corn comes off," Miller said.

But he said to plant the mixture of turnip, clover and grass seed now you would need a helicopter or crop duster. But not with today's technology.

Miller is using drones that can carry up to 80 pounds.

They hovered over the field accurately dropping seed falling into between the rows without damaging the corn.

"With propellers, that pushes it down so you get more of more of a contact and it's more accurate," Miller said.

Miller contracted with Volitant, a drone business out of Dunbar.

"This drone industry is exploding," said Volitant owner Kevin Knorr.

He said the drones fly in a programmed pattern. They just have to keep filling the seed container and rotating batteries.

"It stays out there and flies on a grid and It'll tell us when it's going to be empty and we'll bring it back home," Knorr said.

Knorr said they have several licensed drone pilots and dozens of clients. Some farmers are even purchasing drones.

I do think the safety that the drone brings and the efficiencies that it brings the chemical savings that it brings. We're going to be in a situation where this is going to be commonplace on the farm fields across the United States," Knorr said.

He said current government regulations are the biggest challenge for drones taking off in the AG industry.

"This is essentially the equivalent of a crop dusting certificate," Knorr said.

University of Nebraska Lincoln Journalism Drone Lab founder Matt Waite said there has been some movement to loosen some rules.

The law moves very slow and technology moves very fast and you are always going to find frustration there," Waite said.

He said the rule that limits flight to the only line of site operations is something the Federal Aviation Administration is looking at.

"Fields are large and our eyes don't see far when we're talking about thousands of acres so true operation in large-scale agriculture is difficult because of that line of sight limit," Waite said.

"Until those rules are in place that's going to limit some of these far-reaching ideas," Waite said.

Miller already used drones to spray crops this year. He believes the future is here.

"With the hover, you can see the mist going straight down and there's not much of a drift going sideways," Miller said.

Miller said using a drone costs about the same as hiring a helicopter or plane.

However, they do save on the amount of seed and chemicals they need. Knorr said the cost could come down as drones can carry heavier loads.

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