Our Journey

AutoSpray Systems Ltd was officially founded in January 2020, when Scott Dowell, Rob Pearson and Andy Sproson came together to apply their combined expertise in aviation, regulation, and commercial operations to agricultural drone technology.

Just two months later, in March 2020, we held our first technical meeting with spray experts at Harper Adams University, laying the foundations for a strong academic partnership that continues today.

Between 2021 and 2022, we became the only agricultural organisation to with the CAA PDRA02 experimental licence, granting permission to operate drones up to 150kg for spraying, a first for the sector.

In June 2022, PwC released its “Skies Without Limits V2” report, quoting AutoSpray Systems as an industry example, which was formally adopted as UK government policy just a month later, marking a pivotal moment in national drone strategy.

By December 2022, we had secured the UK’s first commercial drone spreading and spraying Operational Authorisation, opening the door for compliant, large-scale drone application in agriculture and land management.

In April 2023, we launched the UK’s first drone spraying training course, helping build a new generation of qualified, confident remote pilots.

The momentum continued into March 2024, when we submitted a full dataset of spray drift trials to the Chemicals Regulation Division (CRD), providing the evidence base needed for wider product approvals and safe aerial application.

Most recently, in June 2025, we were invited to a private roundtable with government officials in Whitehall to address regulatory bottlenecks and share field-level insight. Just one month later, in July 2025, we agreed efficacy requirements for commercial pesticide authorisations with DEFRA and HSE, helping set a national standard for drone-applied products going forward.