More crop farmers turning to drone use

URUMQI - An increasing number of drone operators are helping farmers across China harvest their crops, reducing the costs of pesticides and increasing yields.

One drone operator, Ma Yangyang, brought more than 30 drones from eastern China's Anhui province to spray defoliant on cotton fields in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region this autumn.

Ma purchased an unmanned aerial vehicle for agricultural plant protection and joined a UAV squad last year. The 25-yearold learned to operate the drone skillfully, and soon became a team leader.