FAA Petition for UAS Exemption, from Environmental Image Group, Inc. 1

Petition	for	UAS	Exemption

Under	Section	333,	FAA

Sept.	10,	2015

from

Executive	Summary

This	document	represents	part	of	an	application	for	an	FAA	Exemption	under	

Section	333	to	operate	a	small	UAS	commercially,	for	purposes	of	aerial	

photography.	The	three-pound	DJI	Phantom3	will	be	used	to	obtain	aerial	images	

and	videos	for	my	consulting	corporation,	The	Environmental	Image	Group,	Inc.

(EIG),	a	California	C-Corporation.	I	will	be	the	sole	operator,	carefully	observing	

laws,	regulations	and	good-use	guidelines	to	create	aerial	images for	my	clients.

My	use	of	aerial	photography	began	in	1962	as	a	U.S.	Air	Force	“Aerial	Photo	

Interpreter”	(Specialty	code	R20650).	I	started	the	consulting	business	in	1983,	and	

have	handled	many	cases,	primarily	in	the	area	of	Environmental	Litigation,	but	also	

in	military	reconnaissance	and	training	for	this	application.	In	general,	I	have	done	

most	of	my	work	from	historical	aerial	photography	purchased	from	government	

and	commercial	sources.	The	reason	for	the	request	for	an	FAA	Exemption	under	

Section	333,	is	to	produce	some	of	my	own	aerial	imagery	for	a	variety	of	purposes,	

including	site	familiarization	for	case	workers,	public	relations	photography,	

advertising	illustrations,	publishing,	etc.

The	small	UAS owned	by	my	corporation will	be	operated	strictly under	the	

FAA	guidelines,	including	especially	the	following	conditions:	aircraft	weight	under	

5 pounds,	speed	under	50	mph,	elevation	under	200	feet	AGL,	visual	line-of-site	at	

all	times,	daylight	operations	only,	at	least	3-mile	atmospheric	visibility,	only	one	

UAS	at	a	time,	no	operations	from	moving	vehicles	or	aircraft,	no	flights	near	air	
2 FAA Petition for UAS Exemption, from Environmental Image Group, Inc.

facilities	or	if	aircraft	would	happen	to	be	flying	in	the	same	low-altitude	airspace. In	

addition,	there	would	be no	operations	near	any	forest	fire	or	other	disaster	site.	

Any	intentional	invasion of	privacy	of	individuals	or	business	properties	will	also	be	

strictly	avoided	by	the	Environmental	Image	Group.	The	study	of	industrial	sites	by	

EIG	is	with	the	permission	of	the	land	and	facilities	owners,	who may	find	

themselves	in	court	disputes	regarding	the	past	history	of	the	company	and	any	

potential	environmental	pollution	caused	by	their	operations.	Stated	in	another	

way,	in	the	32-year	history	of	my	consulting	business,	aerial	photography	has	never	

been	used	for	any	kind	of	industrial	espionage or	prying.

Personal	Qualifications

As	mentioned,	I	began	my	work	with	aerial	photography	in	1962	in	the	U.S.	

Air	Force.	I	had	interrupted	an	unsuccessful	college	beginning.	The	military	service	

was	exactly	the	right	place	for	me	to	mature	and	develop.	After	Basic	Training,	I	was	

sent	to	Intelligence	School,	in	a	19-week	training	program	in	Aerial	Photo	

Interpretation.	Shortly	after	graduation,	I	found	myself	on	the	fringes	of	the	Cuban	

Missile	Crisis	in	October	1962.	It	was	so	interesting	and	exciting,	that	I	decided	to	

make	this	my	life’s	work.	My	time	in	the	Air	Force	gave	me	extensive	experience	

with	low	level	tactical	PI	work	in	Germany,	as	well	as	a	couple	years	satellite	

reconnaissance work in	the	“Corona”	Program	(now	all	declassified).	

Following	my	Air	Force	Experience,	I	then	returned	to	college,	completing	my	

BA	Degree	(UC	Santa	Barbara),	MSc.	Degree	(International	Center	for	Aerial	Survey	

and	Earth	Science,	Delft,	The	Netherlands),	and	PhD.	Degree	at	the	University	of	

Munich,	Germany.	In	the	undergraduate	work,	I	majored	in	Physical	Geography	and	

minored	in	Geology.	In	graduate	school,	I	concentrated	on	Quantitative	

Geomorphology	and	Remote	Sensing.	My	doctoral	dissertation was	published	in	

Germany.

During	my	career,	I	taught	at	the	university	level	for	32	years,	did	extensive	

research	work	and	published,	and	continued	my	aerial	photo	consulting	business	on	

a	part-time	basis.	In	1988	I	obtained	a	National	Science	Foundation	Grant	for	a	PCbased	digital	image	processing	system.	This	proved	to	be	an	important,	mid-career	

turning	point.	It	meant	that	I	became	qualified	in	the	classic,	legacy	methods,	as	well	

as	the	digital	image-processing	arena.	In	2005	I	retired	from	James	Madison	

University	(Virginia),	but	continued	to	do	consulting	work.	I	also	began	doing	some	

nature	photography	for	the	Catalina	Conservancy	and	others.	I	feel	that	I	am	well	

qualified	to	responsibly	use	a	drone	for	commercial	aerial	photo	application.
FAA Petition for UAS Exemption, from Environmental Image Group, Inc. 3

Environmental	Image	Group,	Inc.

Background

My	consulting	business	began	in	1983,	as	a	result	of	my	background	in	Aerial	

Photo	Interpretation	(PI).	In	the	beginning,	most	of	the	clients	were	companies	in	

the	military	reconnaissance	field.	I	helped	design	automated	Photo	Interpreter’s	

work	stations,	and	did	some	training	of	company	and	military	personnel	in	the	

techniques.	Then	in	the	middle	1980’s	I	began	to	get	requests	for	actual	Photo	

Interpretation	work	on	polluted	industrial	sites	which	were	under	litigation.	This	

work	expanded	rapidly,	allowing	me	to	hire	four	former	university	students	of	mine	

for	part-time	PI	work.	This	work	waxed	and	waned	through	the	years	according	to	

the	conditions	in	this	extremely	narrow	market.	

In	2014,	I	formed a	California	C-Corporation	as	an	umbrella	for	this	

continuing	work.	Over	the	last	five	years,	or	so,	I’ve	had	a	half-dozen	clients,	all	in	

the	area	of	industrial	pollution	litigation.	In	some	cases,	I’ve	had	to	do	fieldwork	and	

ground	photography	to	help	understand	and	document	the	nature	of	the	industry	

and	the	ground	conditions.	In	this	connection,	I	would	like	to	be	able	to	produce	

custom	aerial	photography.	For	example,	a	video	fly-through	of	the	facility,	or	

around	it,	could	be	quite	useful	for	orienting	caseworkers,	juries,	judges,	etc.	In	

addition,	standard	vertical	or	oblique,	stereo	imagery	can	be	quite	helpful	to	Photo	

Interpreters	studying	the	site	and	writing	reports.	In	every	fieldwork	case,	the	

conditions	for	access	are	carefully	negotiated	by the	attorneys;	it	is	not	used	to	spy	

on	anybody.	

During	the	current,	and	previous	decade,	the	availability	of	aerial	film for	

photo	lab	reproduction	has	been	decreasing	dramatically;	most	things	are	shifting	to	

digital.	However,	the	quality	of	the	stereo,	digital view	does	not	generally	equal	what	

you	see	by	looking	at	high-quality	film reproductions	from	the	original	negatives,	at	

high	magnification.		The	work	of	EIG,	Inc.	is	mostly	done	by	observing	through	a	

Bausch	&	Lomb	“Zoom	Stereoscope”	(i.e.,	microscope).	Such	equipment	is	illustrated	

on	the	business	card	at	the	beginning	of	this	request.	Being	able	to	zoom,	in	stereo,	

over	an	industrial	site,	allows	you	to	prepare	extremely	detailed	analyses/reports	of	

the	conditions	on	the	ground	at	almost	any	point	in	the	past.	However,	the	shift	to	

digital	in	the	industry,	means	that	fewer	and	fewer	/specialists	are	still	engaged	in	

this	work.	It	is	a	two-edged	sword:	high-quality	airphotos,	reproduced	onto	film,	are	

getting	more	and	more	scarce,	but	fewer	contractors	are	venturing	into	this	work	at	

all.	It	is	my	expectation	that	a	market	for	this	type	of	tedious,	detailed	work	will	

continue	to	exist	for	some	time,	and	that	this	classical	approach	could	be	

significantly	enhanced	by	the	use	of	modern,	drone	photography.
4 FAA Petition for UAS Exemption, from Environmental Image Group, Inc.

Intended	Drone	Uses

After	the	last	quarter	Century	of	military	UAV	use,	the	civilian	market	is	just	

getting	started.	Based	on	my	reading,	it	appears	that	reliable,	inexpensive,	simpleto-operate	drones	are	now	widely	available.	In	one	sense,	this	is	good,	but	it	has	also	

brought	serious	problems	along	with	it.	My	intention	is	to	use	a	small	drone	very	

responsibly,	to	create	useful	and	desirable	aerial	photos	and	videos.	Some	of	these	

will	probably	be	for	my	industrial	pollution	litigation	clients.	However,	I	feel	there	is	

also	a	wide-open	market	for	advertising	photos,	public	relations	graphics,	and	other	

applications	of	this	kind.	To	take	full	advantage	of	this	exciting	new	capability,	the	

user	would	need	to	understand	something	about	photography,	aerial	photography,	

and	digital	image	processing.	As	indicated	in	the	Personal	Qualifications	section	

above,	I	believe	I	will	be	in	a	position	to	carry	out	this	work	in	a	professional	and	

experienced	manner.	

For	some	weeks,	I	have	been	reading	about	drone	use	and	drone	regulation.	

It	is,	of	course,	a	new	concern,	regarding	FAA	responsibility	for	air	safety.	It	is	my	

intention	to	be	a	professional	and	safe	drone	operator	for	aerial	photography.	I	have	

been	reading	everything	I	can	find	about	the	cases	of	illegal	and	improper	drone	use,	

including	especially:	operations	over	a	fire	area,	near	an	air	facility,	or	anywhere	

where	aircraft	may	be	operating,	or	for	the	purposes	of	invasion	of	privacy	for	

individuals	or	businesses.	Other	misuses	of	the	tool	will	undoubtedly	come	to	the	

surface.	

Based	on	my	study	of	these	issues,	it	is	my	intention	to	operate	my	small	

drone	very	responsibly	and	become	a	professional	user	of	that	small	airspace.	In	

particular,	I	will:

 Use	only	a	small	drone	(5	pounds	or	less)

 Fly	at	speeds	of	40	mph	or	less

 Utilize	standard	aircraft	ID	markings,	as	much	as	possible

 Fly	at	altitudes	of	250	feet	or	less

 Cease	flying	when	initial	battery	level	warnings	occur

 Fly	visual	line-of-site	only

 Fly	under	daylight	conditions	only

 Fly	only	one	UAS	at	a	time	per	operator

 Fly	only	when	visibility	is	at	least	3	miles

 Avoid	flights	within	5	NM	of	any	airport	control	tower

 Avoid	flights	within	3	NM	of	any airport	with	a	published	instrument	flight	

procedure,	but	no	operational	tower

 Avoid	flights	within	2	NM	of	any	airport	without	tower	or	published	

instrument	flight	procedures

 Avoid	flights	within	2	NM	of	any	heliport	with	a	published	instrument	flight	

procedure
FAA Petition for UAS Exemption, from Environmental Image Group, Inc. 5

 Avoid	any	other	hazards	or	conditions,	which the	FAA	may	deem	necessary	

in	the	future.

The	Public	Interest

I	believe	that	granting	this	exemption	will	be	in	the	public	interest	for	several	

reasons.	First,	it	will	allow	me	to	more	effectively	carry	out	my	environmental	

litigation	consulting	work.	This	work	supports	the	apportioning	of	responsibility	in	

industrial	pollution	cases,	speeding	up	the	process	of	negotiating	costs,	and	leading	

to	the	more	rapid	remediation	of	the	land.	I	provide	very	detailed,	historical	

information	about	the	outdoor	activities	at	industrial	facilities,	which	have	become	

contaminated.	This	information	makes	it	more	difficult	for	the	responsible	parties	to	

evade	cleanup	costs.	Because	this	terribly	expensive	litigation	process	can	go	on	for	

years,	it	is	in	the	public	interest	to	establish	the	facts	sooner,	and	resolve	the	

disputes	over	responsibility.	I	believe	that	high	quality	drone	imagery	will	assist	me	

in	this.	

Second,	I	am	confident	that	I	can	carry	out	the	procurement	of	advertising	

and	public	relations	airphotos	very	responsibly,	and	with	a	quality that	is	superb.	

During	my	university	teaching	career,	I	had	to	seek	out	interesting,	high	quality	

aerial	photography	for	our	weekly	lab	exercises.	This	photography	had	to	be	clear	

enough	and	good	enough	to	allow	a	beginner	to	clearly	see	the	phenomena	being	

studied	that	week.	To	do	this,	especially	in	conjunction	with	my	R.O.T.C.	teaching,	I	

had	to	go	through	hundreds	of	rolls	of	reconnaissance	flights	from	training	missions	

and	camera	test	flights.	I	believe	that	I	developed	“an	eye”	for	superb	aerial	photos.	I	

now	want	to	use	this	talent	to	produce	exceptional	airphotos	for	public	relations	

and	advertising	purposes.	How	is	this	in	the	public	interest?	If	this	job	is	done	very	

well,	the	American	businesses	and	industries	served,	will	have	a	greater	chance	of	

economic	success,	because	they	have	gotten	their	story	out,	more	effectively.	

Third,	in	the	increasingly	crowded	field	of	UAS	operations,	if	those	involved	

are	truly	responsible	and	professional,	this	amazing	new	tool	will	have	success	and	

garner	respect,	instead	of	the	justified	criticism	and	suspicion	which	we	have	begun	

to	see,	as	a	result	of	improper,	unprofessional	application	of	the	tool.	I	believe	that	I	

have	every	capability	to	be	this	kind	of	UAS	pilot.	 A	consulting	business	cannot	exist	

successfully	for	thirty-two	years	without	integrity.	My	company	does	not	advertise,	

nor	respond	to	RFP’s	with	proposals.	All	of	our	business	has	come	to	us	as	a	result	of	

word-of-mouth	and	reputation.	I	would	like	to	apply	this	same	level	of	

professionalism and	integrity	to	UAS	operations.	I	am	quite	confident	that	this	is	in	

the	public	interest.	I	hope	that	the	FAA	will	find	enough	evidence in	the	pages	of	this	

application	to	support	this	claim.