58 | A real passion for the drone industry A good 85% of business comes from the Hawkes Bay region where three staff, including Scotty are based. Sue Russell Scotty Horgan, from Hawkes Bay and Bayden Neustroski based in Wanaka, established agricultural drone company Airborne Solutions having first met as helicopter operators. Each shares a passion for the drone industry where advances in sophistication of these technologies means they can be applied across an array of land-based situations, offering real solutions to clients in farming, agriculture and horticulture sectors. It was during time when Scotty was flying helicopters to spray paddocks that it occurred to him that drone technologies would eventually take a large portion of his work in a chopper and it was this thinking and Bayden’s interest in getting involved in this ‘full of potential’ new venture, that caused the forming of Airborne Solutions. Since then, Scotty says, they haven’t looked back. “We decided to go for the best possible technologies available and went with XAG, who only build spray drones. Now we are the sole distributor for these aircraft in New Zealand.” A good 85% of business comes from the Hawkes Bay region where three staff, including Scotty are based. Bayden concentrates on the grape growing sector in his neck of the woods and also spends considerable time doing demonstrations of what their spray drones are capable of. “We’re finding that a lot of our clients prefer using a drone than other spray delivery methods. They’re less invasive and much quieter for those living close to vineyards, commercial crop producers and farmers alike.” As a fully-fledged aircraft, there are a number of hoops for operators to jump through before they can operate their own drones. Bayden and Scotty don’t provide the formal training programmes, operators need to eventually pass to obtain a civil aviation certificate, but they are there to explain to those purchasing their own spray drone, all the benefits that come from using XAG equipment. “Our days start really early, checking weather stations to assess the viability of applying spray, given the weather conditions. When we are spraying we are often home by midday, as the wind conditions tend to mean drone operation isn’t viable as the day progresses.” Using the spray drones every day is their strength. They’re used to operating them over all manner of ground forms. RURAL SERVICES » Airborne Solutions Airborne Solutions also build their own refill stations for drones to return to during spraying. “From a horticultural point of view, it will be more cost-effective for owners to have their own drones, than use the services of a contractor. It’s also much faster. We can do the work of 2 ½ tractors with one drone – this is at a lower water rate of course, but Email: info@educhem.co.nz Web: www.educhem.co.nz Educhem is a recognized agricultural training company which specialises in delivering courses to clients to t their agricultural and agrichemical needs. We are happy to come and discuss a client’s needs and adapt training courses that are applicable to their business as well as meeting the training requirements of CAA, RMA, Worksafe and EPA. Proudly supporting Airborne Solutions Freephone: 0800 338 2436 we are beginning to prove these lower rates are just as effective” Another core activity is to provide seeding services. “We put in a 22ha rapeseed crop on very steep country where the manoeuvrability of the drone and precision of placement is second to none.” As a young company, just entering its third year of operation, Scotty says the forecast forward for business is extremely positive. “We’ve moved to commercial premises and are keeping ourselves pretty busy. We see nothing but a very positive future for our fledgling business as more and more customers experience the benefits that come from using drones for spraying.”
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