A new exemption for drone piloting from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has cleared the airways for “drone-swarm” agriculture, a method of seeding and spraying crops at a fraction of the traditional cost.

Hylio, a Texas-based drone manufacturer, successfully applied for an exemption from the FAA to allow fleets of drones weighing 55 pounds or more to fly together.

It’s the first exception of its kind and makes the process competitive with traditional tractors and seeding rigs. A set of three drones costs substantially less than a single tractor. Drones use less water to carry inputs, causing less soil compaction and only a fraction of the fuel for generators to recharge batteries in the field.

A two-person team can fly up to three drones at once in a “swarm,” covering triple the area in the same time, making drone swarms almost as fast as a conventional tractor.

Read more on the evolution of drone swarms here.