The Lleida-based company Aerofor offers pilot training, aircraft distribution and advice to farmers.
The spraying of crops with drones in the Lleida area will take a quantum leap in the coming years thanks to companies like Aerofor, which is dedicated to pilot training, distribution and advice on the use of these unmanned aircraft. This was stated today by the commercial director and co-founder of Aerofor, Eduard Ibáñez, during the conference “Drones in agriculture, what now?”, which took place in the Technology Agora of the Area 5G de Ponent, “LleidaON”, in Pavilion 4 of Fira de Lleida, during the 67th edition of the Sant Miquel Agricultural Fair (National Agricultural Machinery Show) and the 36th edition of Eurofruit (Professional Fair of Suppliers to the Fruit Industry).
Aerofor, a company from Lleida, will make a firm commitment next year to spraying with drones and plans to apply phytosanitary treatments to more than 2,000 hectares, more than half of which will be in the Lleida area, according to Ibáñez. In any case, in his speech, he wanted to clarify that aircraft are very suitable, above all, for the treatment of extensive crops, such as rice or maize, but not so much for fruit trees. According to him, fruit trees that are more than 3 years old have foliage that makes it difficult for drone spraying to permeate. It is not ideal for vines either, although it depends on the type of treatment and the conditions under which it has to be done.
However, Ibáñez encouraged this type of treatment with drones whenever possible, either by acquiring and flying an aircraft or by contracting specialised companies. The Aerofor co-founder explained that the European Union is working on a new European directive for 2023, which will then have to be rolled out with a new royal decree and regulations with the aim, in principle, of differentiating between drones and aircraft and simplifying the permits and bureaucracy for making unmanned flights.
While all this is in the pipeline, Ibáñez advised following all the current indications and even advising the authorities in the area where the flights are to be made beforehand to avoid conflicts. He also advised using the ENAIRE Drones application, a Grupo Fomento company that manages air navigation in Spain, to fly drones safely. After his talk, the attendees were able to enjoy a demonstration of a large, high-capacity drone designed for crop spraying in Pavilion 4 of Fira de Lleida.
This year’s Sant Miquel Fair has a stand in Pavilion 4 of the Area 5G de Ponent “Lleida ON”, which functions as a technology agora with a packed programme of activities. The initiative is supported by the Catalan Government’s Department of Digital Policy and Public Administration and is being carried out as part of Catalonia’s 5G Strategy, with the collaboration of Mobile World Capital Barcelona, the i2CAT Foundation, the Lleida Chamber of Commerce, Lleida Provincial Council, Lleida City Council and Telefónica.
