No person may engage in the activity or business of aerial application in the State of North Dakota without first obtaining (or being listed as a pilot on) an aerial applicator's license from the North Dakota Aeronautics Commission - See North Dakota Administrative Law 6-02-02. Holding a North Dakota Pesticide Applicator Certification from NDSU Extension does not replace this required license from our office.

If you need to preview the checklist of state requirements before applying, click here. See our Informational Guide, or follow the Game Board! By this point, you should have received your FAA Part 137 Operating Certificate, a North Dakota Chemical Certificate Number for all pilots, and FAA Remote Pilot Certificate Numbers for all pilots.

After submitting this application, you will receive payment instruction.

SAVE often to prevent losing any data while completing this online form.

Licensed aerial applicators information will appear here.

A sample of the Part 137 Certificate looks like this: (Important Note: If you do not have FAA Part 137 - Operating Certificate, it is illegal to spray!)

If you need more information about Waivers, view the FAA link here. Visit FAADroneZone.faa.gov under your Part 107 account.

CHIEF PILOT INFORMATION AND RESPONSIBILITY

(see North Dakota Administrative Law 6-02-02-04)

All operators or contractors employing one or more unmanned aircraft Pilots for the purpose of conducting aerial application by an unmanned aircraft in this state shall employ at least one Chief Pilot. The named Chief Pilot must meet the Pilot qualification (shown below) and attach evidence of that training to this application. (Evidence can be a paragraph about this education/experience, an agenda/certificate from the course/training, etc.)

1) All Pilots/Chief Pilots must have attended an approved training program or, 2) have received at least ten (10) hours of direct ground-supervised solo flight at operational loads while conducting aerial application. Often times, this is instruction provided by the company you purchased your drone from.

It is the responsibility of the named Chief Pilot to determine the amount of supervision a Pilot requires and ensure each Pilot is able to contact the Chief Pilot during aerial application operations.

Non-resident aerial applicators from neighboring states may use their chemical certificate as a reciprocating agreement. For more information, contact the NDSU Extension Service at (701) 231-6388. Expired certificates will not be accepted. A Pilot who is identified on the aerial applicator's license must hold a North Dakota Pesticide Applicator Certificatiopn (Air/Ground Core) from the NDSU Extension Pesticide Certification and Training program.

ND WORKER'S COMPENSATION (701) 328-3800, toll free: 800-777-5033, or 

All owner/operators HIRING any personnel must take out ND Worker's Compensation and document the number. (If not required, report 'NONE')

REMOTE PILOT OPERATOR TO BE INCLUDED ON LICENSE:

The Pilot of any aircraft performing aerial application shall carry proof of the North Dakota aerial applicator's licensure at all times. An operator of an unmanned aircraft used for aerial application must hold a federal aviation administration remote pilot certificate and have acquired the federal aviation administration exemptions required to perform the specified aerial application services. Prior to conducting solo flights, Pilots must have attended an approved training program or have received at least ten hours of direct ground-supervised solo flight at operational loads while conducting aerial application. Supervision must be provided by a Pilot who has conducted a minimum of twenty-five hours of solo flight at operational loads while conducting aerial application. The operator shall document and maintain written records verifying the pilot has fulfilled the flight requirements. It is the responsibility of the Chief Pilot to determine the amount of supervision a Pilot requires. The Chief Pilot must be familiar with the area in which the supervised Pilot(s) are flying and be able to contact each Pilot daily as needed. 

All aircraft operated in aerial application requiring a North Dakota aerial applicator's license shall be registered with the North Dakota Aeronautics Commission prior to actual use of the aircraft in this state and prior to the issuance of an aerial applicator's license. Annual registration fees shall be in accordance with the schedule set forth in North Dakota Century Code sections 2-05-11 and 2-05-18 and shall be paid in full in advance. You must notify our office of any aircraft added after approval of this application. Per North Dakota Administrative Law 6-02-02-04.2, the maximum operating weight of an unmanned aircraft while conducting aerial application is five hundred pounds.

If you have not yet registered your drone, click 'SAVE' on this application and register it here. (You may continue with the application proceses without the NDAC Registration number. It will be assigned and recorded only after our office processes the payment.)

For the safety and protection of persons and property, each operator of a business engaged in aerial application must receive the information provided by the annual aerial applicator safety meeting or the PAASS Program (Professional Aerial Applicators' Support System). A Chief Pilot employed by an operator may attend the meeting in place of the operator. The meeting will be held in the first calendar quarter of each year and address aviation safety, business and operation security, and chemical storage.

An application for a license for aerial spraying under section North Dakota Administrative Law 6-02-02-02 will not be approved by the commission unless the applicant's operator or Chief Pilot has attended the annual safety meeting.

The licensee shall file with the Aeronautics Commission no later than December 1st of the year of application a summary of the total number acres treated by category such as for weed control, insect control, fertilizer application, fungicide application, etc. Failure of any licensed aerial applicator to furnish copies of such reports upon request of the aeronautics commission, in a reasonable time, shall be grounds for suspension of an aerial applicator's state license.

You may submit the acreage summary HERE when the 2027 season concludes but no later than December 1st. NDAC will send a reminder around the beginning of November.

I certify that I understand and meet the requirements to be a licensed aerial applicator operating in North Dakota.