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North Central Iowa | By FAA rules, as the pilot of the drone, you must have line of sight with the drone at all times. If it is out of line of sight, you can have a person stationed where the drone is to be your line of sight as long as they are in constant communication with you as the pilot (cell phone, radio, etc.). The FAA allows you to fly up to 400 feet above ground level which shouldn't be an issue for you. Most drones have a range of 2-3 miles as long as the transmitter and drone have a clear line of sight to each other. However, it goes back to the FAA rule that the you have to have eyes on the drones while flying.
FAA also does not allow night flying unless you are Part 107 certified and even then, you have to file a waiver and get permission from the FAA to fly at night. Part 107 certification is for those who fly for commercial purposes. If your herd is commercial (raising cattle to make money) then you need to be Part 107 certified to fly and that is a whole different ball game. Lots of online places that will charge you $$$ to prep you for the test, then pay $150 and take the test at a certified test center, hope you pass the test, go through TSA background check, then get your Part 107 license which is good for 2 years.
There are several drones that would work for what you want. DJI has several models and I would recommend the Mavic. Phantom would also be good but they are not making/selling them anymore.
One thing I found with my drone and cattle...they are not fond of the drone if you are within 30 feet of them. The up side to discovering that little fact was that was the quickest I got them up to the yard from the pasture and it didn't take me, my dad, my daughters, and a lot of patience to get them up to the yard.
Hope this helps. Email is in my profile. Feel free to email me with any other questions you have.
Good luck! | |
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Checking cattle - what's possible?
