Bruce McPherson

Drone technology is here, and it is helping farms become more efficient.

That’s why Markus Weber was involved in starting an Edmonton-based company called LandView Drones, which also conducts a drone school as part of the business. The company will conduct its Ag Drone School in 19 communities between B.C. and Manitoba this spring, and the first one will take place in Kelowna on Thursday and Friday at Rutland Centennial Hall.

The school allows potential customers to get a feel for drones and their capabilities before they buy the technology.

“They can learn more about it and figure out what would actually serve them well on the farm before they spend the money,” Weber said. “So about 80 per cent of the people who come to the school have never flown a drone before in their life, and they’re kind of there to learn and investigate and eventually make a purchasing decision.”

The course runs from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. both days and features a wide variety of topics, from map data processing to best practices to uses for livestock and other farm aspects. It also includes taking the online Transport Canada test that all drone pilots are required to pass if they want to fly a device that weighs more than 250 grams.

Participants will learn the basics of flying a drone on Thursday and then have the opportunity to operate several models outdoors on Friday.

Lunch will be provided both days.

Weber said drones can be particularly useful for farmers in the Okanagan, as they can map fields and fly over them to see how their crops are faring. The devices save serious time and money.

“Any vascular plant will give you a different reflectance using near infrared, so it isn’t specific to the plant,” Weber said. “So things like vineyards and orchards are ideal scenarios for drones.

“Anything where there’s a high-grossing crop where you’re making more money per acre, it’s worth it to do more monitoring and really protect that crop well.”

More information about this week’s Ag Drone School can be found here.