Watch: Indonesian farmer rides giant drone across field, goes viral

3 min readNew DelhiJul 10, 2026 01:30 PM IST

Indonesia's Agriculture Minister Amran Sulaiman described the idea as “quite creative”

Most people are used to seeing farmers move around their fields on tractors or bullock carts. But one farmer in Indonesia has caught the internet’s attention for choosing a far more unusual mode of transport — a giant agricultural drone.

A video circulating widely on social media shows the farmer suspended beneath a heavy-lift farming drone as it flies him from his field to a nearby parking area.

Farmer flown 1.5 km

CNA reported the farmer was flown around 1.5 kilometres from his farmland in Tuban.

Speaking to local media, the director of farming company PT Bina Tani Makmur Jombang said the flight was simply an experiment to test the drone’s capabilities. He also clarified that only workers who volunteered participated in the activity.

Indonesia’s Agriculture Minister Amran Sulaiman was also asked about the now-viral clip on July 9. Speaking to the Singapore-based multinational news channel, he described the idea as “quite creative” and said there was no objection to using drones to transport people, provided adequate safety measures were in place.

Watch the viral video:

An Indonesian farmer has gone viral for using a drone as a mode of transportation.

Video shows his journey above ground in Java as he safely makes it to his destination. pic.twitter.com/5VyE6COIjA

— Al Jazeera English (@AJEnglish) July 9, 2026

Internet divided

The unusual sight quickly sparked discussion online, with many viewers fascinated by the innovation while others questioned how safe it really was.

One user wrote, “Yeah I’d set it to lift me a few feet above the ground, not a height that if something goes wrong I’m going to survive but break every bone in my body.”

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Another joked, “I could use this to go to work and beat the traffic. Hmm.. thanks for the tip!”

A third commenter, who said they were from Indonesia, shared mixed feelings: “He trusts their drone a lot, I only saw a clip of him already floating through the air. But when I watched it from the beginning, it was pretty terrifying with min safety. Still, I hope the man is always safe and doing well. He’s from my country.”

Others pointed out potential risks. One person asked, “Did he think of what happens if there was a bird strike? This is one example of why women live longer than men.”

Not everyone was worried, however. Another user celebrated the idea, saying, “Modern problems require modern solutions, and this Indonesian farmer just took it to the next level! Absolutely fascinating to see innovation in action.”