Farmer Destroys Corporate Spy Drone, Judge Backs Him 🚁⚖️

Dale Hutchins shot a drone out of the sky above his soybean field in June 2022. The company that owned it sued him for $4,200, claiming destruction of property. Our drone was conducting a legally authorized agricultural survey flight over this parcel. FAA regulations permit unmanned aircraft operations over rural and agricultural land.

Mr. Hutchins willfully destroyed a $4,200 commercial asset without legal basis.

That drone came over my field four times in two days, maybe 30 feet off the ground. Hollered at the guy parked on the road, nobody answered. Nobody knocked on my door. Nobody called me. I don't know. I had no idea what it was photographing or

why. We had every right to operate in that airspace. The FAA does not require landowner permission

for aerial survey operations. I've worked that land for 31 years. That's my property. AgriVision's own flight logs show this drone passed over Mr. Hutchins' land six times in 48 hours at altitudes between 30 and 80 feet. The Cosby Doctrine and Tennessee Code annotated section 39-14-408, repeated low altitude overflights without landowner consent constitute aerial trespass. Claim is dismissed. Mr. Hutchins had every legal right to remove a trespassing instrument Claim is dismissed. Mr. Hutchins had every legal right to remove a trespassing instrument

from his property. If your company wants to survey farmland, I'd suggest calling the farmer first.