Jd4450 - 1/20/2016 20:51 Would it be such a terrible thing to hire a third party to fly your fields. It's a relatively mundane task that could actually chew up a good part of your day. It's something to consider since all the red tape and hassle could be someone else's problem for a reasonable per acre fee, or other pricing option. I would considering hiring out if it meant more time making decisions rather than gathering the information to base the second off of. The most difficult to quantify factors in any analysis maybe the "cool" factor, ie "This is something I enjoy doing." Sure, it will not be for everyone; and everyone will not want the same level of output from the drone. Do I need NIR (or whatever) images? What images do I want/need? Do I need to learn to evaluate the images when I get them? Or is it best to hire someone to do all of that? Is the drone the most economical way to get that information? I am sure there are as many answers as there are farmers. If I want to get a bird's eye view of my operation, an image at various points of time . . . and I enjoy the bird's eye view and the compilation of images and videos, then the rewards may be hard to measure but they still may be there. Thus, the quandary of this thread; Is our use best considered to be as a commercial venture or as a personal/hobby/recreational venture? Well, not really, the question is "Which will the FAA consider it to be?" Only time will tell. | 
Agriculture Use = Commercial Use (Section 333)
