Depredating animals include coyotes and feral pigs, which cause tremendous damage to livestock and crops. According to the U. S. Department of Agriculture, predators kill 300,000 head of livestock and cause over $200 million in losses every year. This concept is best suited for coyote control, but we envision future applications for feral pigs as well.
This is intended for wildlife agencies and serious commercial farm and ranch operations willing to accept the licensing requirements for possession and use. The end-user must hold a FAA Part 107 Pilot License, obtain a FAA Exemption Waiver, pass a federal criminal background check, and submit to ATF NFA firearm transfer requirements. Flight plans must be submitted to the FAA before every operation.
FAA approval will only enable Odonata to test and evaluate a prototype against paper targets. We believe that testing will validate our use-case, and support future efforts to get approval from the State of Texas. The State owns the wildlife, and the end-user must obtain an Aerial Management Permit before actual use.
All flights must occur over unpopulated, access-controlled terrain larger than 500 acres, follow strict operational procedures, and incorporate numerous redundant safety features accepted by the FAA. This concept is safer, cheaper, cleaner, and (with testing) more efficient than existing authorized methods of control.
