Kansas Agricultural Drone Services, llc (KADS) provides agricultural drone services to growers within or adjacent to northeast Kansas. Based in Hiawatha, KS I work fields throughout Brown, Doniphan, Nemaha, Marshall, Washington, Jackson, and Atchison Counties, from the river bottoms along the Missouri to the rolling cropland west of Seneca and south toward Marysville.
Whether you’re confirming corn emergence, timing a fungicide application on soybeans, applying micronutrients during the critical V3-V6 window, or getting cover crops in the ground after wheat harvest, KADS brings precision agricultural drone technology directly to your operation. Without the sales pitch.
I offer several core services: Drone-based crop scouting, Custom aerial application, and Agricultural drone sales and training. All services are fully customized to your fields, your crops, your operation, and your level of knowledge. Here’s what that looks like in practice.
Aerial Crop Scouting Services
Drone Crop Scouting Provides a Unique View
Drone crop scouting is the service that started Kansas Agricultural Drone Services (KADS). In the 2025 growing season I monitored more than 8,000 acres across 125 fields of northeast Kansas, flying a drone with a multispectral camera to build crop health indexes that no ground scout can replicate at the same scale or speed. The ‘View from Above’ is truly unique and highlights things not seen from the ground.
I believe that early identification of crop stress is important to ensure the best harvest. These new views by drone scouting help each farmer apply his wisdom to his crop with new and timely information. My field reports provide actionable information to help you make decisions about treatment before yield is impacted.
Scouting services include:
- Emergence confirmation
- Stand counts
- Multispectral crop health analysis (NDVI, NDRE, and custom indexes)
- Pest and disease pressure mapping
- Yield projection (coming soon)
- Canopy assessment
- Targeted variable rate prescription maps and spot-treatment recommendations
- Year-over-year trend analysis across your fields
- Integration with your farm data system
Agricultural Drone Sales and Specification
Aerial Application with Spray Drone
As an authorized dealer for Revolution Drones through the TerraPlex AG network, I help northeast Kansas growers evaluate, select, and purchase the right agricultural drone for their operation, and I provide the local support after the sale that a remote dealer simply can’t. Purchasing an ag drone is a significant investment. I walk you through a full needs analysis before recommending a model — factoring in your field sizes, crop mix, existing equipment, and whether you plan to fly yourself or hire it out. The Revolution I-19 (20-gallon tank, covering 450-750 acres per day) is a strong fit for most mid-sized northeast Kansas operations, the R-32 will be shipping soon, and even larger drones are being developed.
See the full Revolution Drones I-19 and R-32 pages for complete specifications and pricing.
Sales Services Include
- Farming needs and field analysis
- Drone ownership vs. custom hire assessment
- Demonstration flights on your own ground
- Full drone package specification and ordering
- Delivery, setup, and initial orientation
- Ongoing maintenance assistance and support
Customized Agricultural Drone Training & Consulting
Purchasing Is Step One…
Flying it confidently, and legally, while actually improving your operation, is the real goal.
I provide equipment orientation upon delivery of your new system, but offer highly customized training to ensure your success.
Each session is based on your needs, regardless of whether it is just a morning or several days. I provide practical field training in drone maintenance, mission planning, mission execution, interpreting multispectral imagery, and integrating drone data into your day-to-day farming decisions.
Precision Agriculture Consulting
Not every grower needs a full scouting program or spray contract. Sometimes you just need a straight answer from someone who has flown a lot of northeast Kansas fields and knows what they’re looking at. I offer low-cost consulting sessions — phone, on-farm, or virtual — aimed at helping you figure out whether and how drone technology fits your operation. No packages to sell you. No pressure. Just practical guidance.
Custom Training and Consulting
- Integrating a drone into your existing farm operation
- Field mapping, documentation, and mission planning
- Spraying and spreading equipment setup and calibration
- Uploading drone missions to your precision ag monitors
- FAA Part 107 remote pilot certification preparation
- FAA Part 137 agricultural aircraft operator certification guidance (required to fly commercially)
- Obtaining your FAA N Number and your 44807 exemption (for drones greater than 55lb) and 137 exemptions (required to spray)
- Drone Tender / Trailer planning
- Flight planning
- Readiness assessment
- Regulatory risk assessment
- Phone / text discussion about technique, problems, and solutions
Aerial Application Services
Aerial Application with Spray Drone
Drone aerial application is one of the fastest-growing services for northeast Kansas growers — and for good reason. A spray drone can enter a wet field immediately after rain, when a ground rig would cause compaction or simply can’t get in. It can target only the zones showing stress on your scouting imagery, rather than treating the entire field. And it can cover an 80-acre field in a fraction of the time of conventional equipment.
I provide drone spraying for fungicides, herbicides, liquid fertilizers, and micronutrient applications on corn, soybeans, winter wheat, sorghum, and cover crops throughout northeast Kansas. Fall cover crop broadcasting after harvest or into standing crop is an increasingly popular application for growers trying to build soil health without slowing the harvest window.
All aerial application work is conducted under my FAA Part 137 agricultural aircraft operator certification and Kansas commercial pesticide applicator license.
Aerial Application Services
- Aerial field spraying — fungicides, herbicides, liquid fertilizer, biologicals
- Aerial spot spraying — treating stressed zones identified by drone scouting40
- Aerial spreading — dry fertilizer and soil amendments
- Aerial broadcasting — cover crop seed establishment
- Aerial seeding — even into standing crop
Serving Growers In / Near Northeast Kansas
Helping Farmers right nearby, and even a little further away.
KADS is based in Hiawatha, Kansas and provides agricultural drone services to producers within approximately 50 miles — covering Brown, Doniphan, Nemaha, Marshall, Washington, and Jackson Counties and sales up to 120 miles of Hiawatha. I regularly work in fields in Doniphan County, Brown County, Jackson County, and Atchison County. Northeast Kansas presents a specific set of field conditions: variable terrain from creek bottoms to hilltop prairie, concentrated planting windows, and a crop mix dominated by corn, soybeans, winter wheat, sorghum, and increasingly cover crops. My scouting and application work is tuned to these conditions and not adapted from somewhere else.
I also serve growers in adjacent areas of southeast Nebraska and northwest Missouri when the work is a good fit. If you’re outside this radius and think I can genuinely help your operation, reach out, as I’m willing to travel for the right situation.
Elevate Your Farming with Drone Technology
I serve growers across northeast Kansas — from the river bottoms fields to the hilltop pastures. Whether you’re curious about drone scouting, ready to book an aerial spray application, or thinking about owning your own ag drone, the best next step is a conversation.
There’s no sales pitch. Just a straight talk about your operation, your ground, and whether this technology can help you. Discover how drone services can transform your agricultural practices today!
Common Questions About Agricultural Drone Services
Drone application pricing varies based on product type, field size, and accessibility. Distance travelled, timing, and availability of water vs hot load also matter. Industry rates in Kansas generally run $12–$16 per acre for liquid applications. I price each job individually. Contact me for a quote on your specific fields and application type.
Yes. In Kansas, aerial pesticide application by drone requires an FAA Part 137 agricultural aircraft operator certificate and a Kansas Department of Agriculture pesticide applicator license. Kansas Agricultural Drone Services, llc holds both. If you’re interested in applying yourself, I can help you understand the certification path and help you to obtain the proper credentials.
I will treat nearly anything. My first time on a crop earns a discount! Corn, soybeans, winter wheat, grain sorghum (milo), alfalfa and cover crop fields are common. Pasture herbicide is a growing interest. If you have a crop or application type you don’t see listed, ask — I’ll tell you honestly whether it’s a good fit.
Timing is everything in farming. I get it. During peak season (early summer fungicide window, planting, and harvest), booking 1 to 2 weeks ahead is ideal. That said, I try to accommodate urgent needs when weather and workload allow. Call or text first for time-sensitive applications.
I can fly in light moisture conditions that would prevent ground equipment from entering a field — this is one of the primary advantages of aerial application. I don’t fly in heavy rain or high winds, but I can often get into a field within hours of a rain event when a ground rig would cause compaction or can’t get through.
