Agricultural Rating (Drone Spraying and Spreading)

The Agricultural Rating is the final qualification for drone pilots doing agricultural, horticultural and pest control work. It covers spray application and fertiliser application from a drone.

It's a practical rating: two days with an instructor, followed by supervised flights. If you already hold the earlier qualifications, you can go straight to the Ag Rating. If you're starting from scratch, we'll take you through the whole pathway.

Expect the full pathway to take 10-12 months. Most of that is waiting for the CAA to approve the operator certificate (UAOC) for the organisation you'll fly under, which is why that step starts first.

The pathway, step by step

1. UAOC: the organisation you'll fly for applies to the CAA for its operator certificate, or already holds one. Approval usually takes 8-10 months. We can help write the exposition that goes with the application.
2. Part 102 Drone Pilot Certificate: learn the rules, then prove you can fly a small drone.
3. Operational Competency Assessment (OCA): get inducted onto the organisation's UAOC, then prove you can fly your ag drone.
4. Chemical Rating: learn to handle aerial chemical application safely, then prove it. Steps 3 and 4 can be done in either order.
5. Agricultural Rating: pull it all together and prove you can operate an ag drone to spray and spread.

Fees: Ag Rating only: $4,000 excl GST, plus examiner travel costs if applicable. Full pathway cost depends on which steps you already hold. UAOC application costs and CAA processing fees are separate.

Delivery: In person, practical. The online parts of the pathway are the Part 102 course and the Chemical Rating.

Buy online: dronetrust.co.nz/products/agricultural-rating. See every step at dronetrust.co.nz/pages/agricultural-spray-drone-pilot-pathway.

To take the Ag Rating on its own, you'll need your Part 102 Drone Pilot Certificate and your Chemical Rating, and you'll need to be flying under an organisation's UAOC. You need to be at least 16.

If you plan to do pest control work, especially with vertebrate toxic agents (VTAs), there are extra requirements, so get in touch first.

DroneTrust is a CAA Part 141 certificated aviation training organisation (TR104722). We've been training drone pilots in New Zealand, the Pacific Islands and the United States since 2018.

The theory for our certificate courses is online and self-paced, so you can start the day you enrol and study around work. This makes it a convenient, affordable exercise, and throughout that time, you can be confident we are here to support you and help you achieve your desired outcome. Each certificate then finishes with a practical flight assessment in person, with one of our 22 examiners from Northland to Southland. Before you meet, your examiner is told how your exam went and which areas you found harder.

Our courses run from the Part 101 and Part 102 Drone Pilot Certificates through to specialist ratings for agricultural spraying, chemical handling, night flying and building cleaning. We also help organisations write the exposition they need to apply to the CAA for their own operator certificate (UAOC).

You can buy any of our courses online at dronetrust.co.nz and start straight away. Not sure which one you need? Send us an enquiry and we'll help you work out your pathway.