New · precision agriculture
Agricultural drone simulator: practise crop spraying with drones
Treat a real olive grove in the scenery with a 40 L agricultural drone: one pass per row, flow tied to speed, wind drift, no-spray buffers, refills at the base and an application map like the one in the drone app. A flying practice, with water and no products.
Can you spray crops with drones in Spain?
Not as a general rule. Royal Decree 1311/2012 on the sustainable use of plant protection products bans aerial application (chapter VI), and drones count as aerial application. Only exceptional, case-by-case authorisations from the regional government where the treatment takes place are possible.
Exceptional cases
Emergency, no technically or economically viable alternative, or alternatives with greater risk to health or the environment. Authorisation is not automatic.
Who authorises
The competent body of the regional government. In Castile and León, for example, the request goes to the Directorate-General for Agricultural and Livestock Production and no treatment may start without a favourable decision.
What is needed
An application plan following annexes VI and VII of RD 1311/2012, a product authorised for the crop and for aerial application, a pilot with the applicator course, a drone registered in REGANIP with an ITEAF inspection, and compliance with aviation safety rules.
Without authorisation
It is an illegal application and may be penalised under plant health legislation.
Informative summary of the linked sources, not legal advice: for a specific case, check the text of Royal Decree 1311/2012 and your regional government.
What an agricultural spraying drone is like
The mission drone uses the figures of the DJI Agras T50 data sheet, one of the most widely used spraying drones. The physics and flight modes are the simulator’s generic multirotor ones (ArduCopter-style), not DJI’s controller.
| Tank | 40 L |
|---|---|
| Take-off weight | 92 kg with a full tank |
| Propellers | 8 × 54", on four coaxial arms |
| Working width | 4 to 11 m |
| Maximum flow | 16 L/min with two nozzles (24 L/min with four) |
| Droplet | 50 to 500 µm (centrifugal nozzles) |
| Maximum wind | 6 m/s |
| Battery | 14S, 30 Ah, 52.2 V |
The olive grove mission in the simulator
A real olive grove
A block of the Osuna countryside scenery, planted at 8 × 8 m with about 150 olive trees, next to a track, a house and beehives.
Flow tied to speed
As on agricultural drones, the flow rises and falls with speed to keep the rate per hectare, capped at 16 L/min.
Drift
The wind shifts the spray and part of it is lost, more so the higher you fly above the canopy.
No-spray buffers
10 m from the track and 25 m from the house and the beehives, marked with stakes. Whatever lands inside costs points.
Refills
When the tank runs dry, land at the base and disarm: the liquid is refilled and the battery swapped. The drone gets lighter as it sprays.
Application map and score
Every tree is coloured by the rate it receives (untreated, short, good or double pass). At the end, a score out of 100 and a report.
The 40 L/ha, the 8 m pass, the 1.5-4 m height above the canopy, the 7 m/s maximum and the buffers are practice values, not agronomic recommendations or legal distances.
What you practise
- Planning row passes and the flight direction for the wind
- Holding height above the canopy and a steady speed with a 92 kg drone
- Managing the liquid, refills and batteries
- Respecting sensitive areas and watching drift
- Reading an application map and fixing what falls short
Frequently asked questions
Is crop spraying with drones legal in Spain?
As a general rule, no: Royal Decree 1311/2012 bans aerial application of plant protection products, drones included. It is only allowed with an exceptional, case-by-case authorisation from the regional government.
What does an exceptional authorisation require?
Justifying the exceptional case and submitting an application plan following annexes VI and VII of RD 1311/2012, with a product authorised for aerial application, a pilot with the applicator course and a drone registered in REGANIP and inspected (ITEAF), as well as complying with aviation safety rules.
Which drone does the simulator use?
A 40 L agricultural drone with the figures of the DJI Agras T50 data sheet: 92 kg at take-off, eight 54" propellers on four coaxial arms, 4 to 11 m working width and up to 16 L/min with two nozzles. Flight control is the simulator’s generic one.
Does it count as official applicator pilot training?
No. It is complementary flying practice. It replaces neither the plant protection applicator course nor AESA’s UAS pilot qualifications.
What is drift and how is it reduced?
Drift is the part of the liquid the wind carries off target. In the simulator it grows with the wind and with height above the canopy, and it shows on the map: flying lower and not spraying in strong wind reduces it.
How long does one hectare take?
It depends on the crop, the rate and the refills. DJI quotes about 21 ha/h for the T50 in its broad-acre test (15 L/ha, 11 m swath and 7 m/s). In the practice olive grove, with 8 m passes at 7 m/s, spraying the one-hectare block takes about 3 minutes, plus turns, transit and refills.
Do I need to install anything?
No: the simulator opens in the browser. The olive grove mission is in Work missions, with the Pro licence, and can be tried in the free 30 minutes.
Data checked in October 2026 against the linked sources.
Sources: BOE · Real Decreto 1311/2012 · Agronews Castilla y León · Drones y fitosanitarios (29/05/2026) · Junta de Castilla y León · Aplicaciones aéreas de fitosanitarios · Junta de Andalucía · Manual de aplicaciones aéreas · Dronefly · DJI Agras T50 (ficha) · Speedy Drone · DJI Agras T50 (2026)
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