Kirk	A.	Wester

– Section	333	Exemption	Petition

1 U.	S.	Department	of	Transportation Docket	Management	System 1200	New	Jersey	Ave,	SE Washington,	DC	20590

January	19,	2016

RE:	Exemption	Request	Section	333	of	the	FAA	Reform	Act	of	2012	and	Part	11 of	the	Federal	Aviation	Regulations

De ar	Sir	or	Madam;

In	accordance	with	the	Public	Guidance	for	Petitions	for	Exemption	filed	under Section	333,	I,	Kirk	A.	Wester	request	exemption	from	the	Federal	Aviation Regulations	to	allow	for	commercial	operations	of	a	DJI	Phantom	3	Standard,

Unmanne d	Aerial	System	(UAS)	for	purposes	of	aerial	photography	and videography;	but	only	so	long	as	such	operations	are	conducted	within	and	under the	conditions	outlined	herein	or	as	may	be	established	by	the	FAA	as	required	by Section	333	or	Section	49	USC	§	4 4701.

Applicant:

Kirk	A.	Wester

2931	Briarwood	Drive Torrance,	CA	90505 (424)	634

- 0817 onetrekkie@gmail.com

Qualifications:

FAA	Issued	Private	Pilot	Certificate	No.	278643

- Airplane	Single	Engine	Land FAA	Issued	Airframe	&	Powerplant	(AMT)	Ce rtificate	No.	278643 FCC	issued	General	Radiotelephone	Operator	Certificate	No.	PG

- 11

- 39936

Experience:

Certified	Private	Pilot

– 27	Years Certified	Airframe	&	Powerplant	(AMT)

– 25	years FCC	GROL	Avionics	systems	repair

- 25	yearsKirk	A.	Wester

– Section	333	Exemption	Petition

2 Attachments:

1.	DJI	Phantom	3	Standard User	Manual 2.	DJI	Phantom	3	Standard Quick	Start	Guide 3.	DJI	Phantom	3	Standard Release	Notes 4.	DJI	Phantom	3	Safety	Guidelines	Disclaimer 5.	DJI	Phantom	Pilot	Training	Guide 6.	Intelligent	Flight	Battery	Safety	Guidelin es

Regulations	from	which	the	exemption	is	requested:

14	CFR	21,	Subpart	H 14	CFR	45.23	(b) 14	CFR	61.113	(a)	&	(b)	&	14	CFR	61.133	(a) 14	CFR	91.7	(a) 14	CFR	91.9	(b)	(2) 14	CFR	91.103	(b)	(2)

14	CFR	91.109 14	CFR	91.119	(c)

14	CFR	91.121

14 CFR	91.151	(a) 14	CFR	91.203	(a)	&	(b) 14	CFR	91.405	(a) 14	CFR	91.407	(a)	(l) 14	CFR	91.409	(a)	(l)	&	(a)	(2) 14	CFR	91.417	(a)	&	(b)

14	CFR	21,	Subpart	H

- In	consideration	of	the	size,	weight,	speed,	and	limited operating	area	associated	with	this UAS	and	i ts	operation,	I,	Kirk	A.	Wester request relief	from	14	CFR	part	21,	Subpart	H,	and	any	associated	noise	certification	and testing	requirements	of	part	36.	The	UAS	will	carry	neither	pilot,	passenger, explosive	materials	nor	flammable	liquids.

1 4	CFR	45.23	(b)

- Even	though	the	UAS	will	have	no	airworthiness	certificate,	an exemption	may	be	needed	as	the	UAS	will	have	no	entrance	to	the	cabin,	cockpit	or pilot	station	on	which	the	word	"Experimental"	can	be	placed.	Given	the	size	of	the
UAS,	two

- i nch	lettering	will	be	impossible.	The	word	"Experimental"	will	be	placed on	the	fuselage	in	compliance	with	§45.29	(f).	The	equivalent	level	of	safety	will	be provided	by	having	the	UAS	marked	on	its	fuselage	as	required	by	§45.29	(f)	where the	pilot,	obse rver	and	others	working	with	the	UAS	will	see	the	identification	of	the UAS	as	"Experimental."Kirk	A.	Wester

– Section	333	Exemption	Petition

3 14	CFR	61.113	(a)	&	(b)	&	14	CFR	61.133	(a)

- Since	the	UAS	will	not	carry	a	pilot or	passengers	I,	Kirk	A.	Wester request	a	relief	from	these	regulations.	A ny	pilot	in command	or	(PIC)	operating	the	UAS	will	hold	a	Sport	Pilot	(or	greater)	certificate. A	visual	observer	or	(VO)	will	be	utilized	and	required	to	communicate	verbally	at all	times.	The	UAS	will	be	limited	to	operations	within	visual	distance	of	b oth	the	PIC and	VO.	All	UAS	operations	will	take	place	in	a	controlled	area.	The	risks	associated with	the	use	of	a	UAS	are	far	less	than	similar	commercial	aircraft	operations.

14	CFR	91.7	(a)

- Since	the	UAS	will	not	carry	a	pilot	or	passengers	there	wil l	be	no airworthiness	certificate	issued	for	the	aircraft,	should	this	exemption	be	granted, no	FAA	regulatory	standard	exists	for	determining	airworthiness.	Given	the	size	of the	aircraft,	maintenance,	and	use	of	safety	checklist	prior	to	each	flight,	an equivalent	level	of	safety	will	be	provided.	All	flights	will	be	in	accordance	with	the safety	and	maintenance	recommendations	found	in	the	DJI	Phantom	3	attachments.

14	CFR	91.9	(b)	(2)

- Given	the	size	and	configuration,	the	UAS	has	no	ability	to

carry a	flight	manual	on	the	aircraft.	There	is	no	room,	capacity,	or	pilot	on	board	to adequately	carry	a	flight	manual.	An	equivalent	level	of	safety	will	be	maintained	by keeping	the	flight	manual	at	the	ground	station	where the	UAS	pilot	will	have	immediat e	access	to	it.

14	CFR	91.103	(b)	(2)

- As	no	FAA	approved	flight	manuals	will	be	provided	for	the aircraft	an	exemption	is	needed.	Alternate	procedures	including	but	not	limited	to reviewing	weather	conditions,	checking	flight	battery	requirements,	chec king takeoff	and	landing	distances	along	with	those	found	in	the	attached	"DJI	Pilot Training"	will	be	implemented.	These	actions	will	provide	an	equivalent	or	higher level	of	safety.

14	CFR	91.109

- UAS	and	remotely	piloted	aircraft	do	not	have	fully	fun ctional	dual controls.	Flight	control	is	achieved	through	the	use	of	a	control	box	that communicates	with	the	aircraft	via	radio	communications.	An	equivalent	level	of safety	will	be	achieved	using	the	real	time	ground	station	data	and	given	the	UAS

will	c arry	neither	a	pilot	nor	passengers.

14	CFR	91.119	(c)

- The	UAS	will	never	be	operated	at	an	altitude	higher	than	400 feet	AGL.	The	UAS	will	operate	in	safe	areas	away	from	public	and	traffic	and	only with	permission	of	the	property	and	structure	owners .	The	UAS	will	also	be restricted	by	the	flight	controller	to	a	maximum	vertical	height	of	400	feet	AGL,	and 1500	feet	horizontal.	Given	the	size,	weight,	maneuverability	and	speed	of	the	UAS, an	equivalent	or	higher	level	of	safety	will	be	achieved.Kirk	A.	Wester

– Section	333	Exemption	Petition

4 14	CFR	91.121

- As	the	UAS	may	not	have	a	barometric	altimeter,	but	instead	a	GPS barometric	sensor	for	altitude	information	an	exemption	may	be	required.	An equivalent	level	of	safety	will	be	achieved	using	a	ground	station	which	links	to	a telemetry	data link.	This	will	provide	the	pilot	with	live	flight	data	monitoring, confirming	the	altitude	of	the	launch	site	shown	on	the	GPS	altitude	indicator	prior to	flight.

14	CFR	91.151	(a)

- The	UAS	has	a	limited	range	and	will	be	limited	to	operations

in	a	co ntrolled	environment.	The	battery	power	the	UAS	provides	approximately	23 minutes	of	flight	time.	The	UAS	is	unable	to	meet	the	30	minute	reserve	requirement and	therefore	requires	an	exemption.	An	equivalent	level	of	safety	will	be	achieved by	monitoring the	battery	through	the	ground	station	and	landing	with	a	minimum of	30	percent	battery	power	remaining.

14	CFR	91.203	(a)	&	(b)

- Given	the	size	and	configuration,	the	UAS	has	no	ability to	carry	a	flight	manual	on	the	aircraft.	There	is	no	room,	capaci ty,	or	pilot	on	board to	adequately	carry	a	flight	manual.	An	equivalent	level	of	safety	will	be	maintained by	keeping	the	flight	manual	at	the	ground	station	where	the	UAS	pilot	will	have

immediate	access	to	it.

Given	the	following	sections	only	apply	to aircraft	with	an	airworthiness	certificate; these	sections	do	not	apply	to	this	applicant.	As	a	safety	precaution,	the	operator will	perform	preflight	inspections	and	ensure	UAS	is	in	working	condition	before initiating	each	flight:

14	CFR	91.405	(a)

1 4	CFR	91.407	(a)	(1) 14	CFR	91.409	(a)	(l)	&	(a)	(2) 14	CFR	91.417	(a)	&	(b)

Equivalent	Level	of	Safety

In	addition	to	the	safety	standards	mentioned	above	the	UAS	will	adhere	to	the following	additional	guidelines:

1.	The	UAS	will	not	be	operated within	5	miles	of	an	airport	unless	prior	contact	to

Air	Traffic	Control	has	been	established. 2.	Flights	will	not	exceed	an	airspeed	of	36	mph	(31.3	knots) 3.	Flights	will	be	operated	at	or	below	an	altitude	never	exceeding	400	feet	AGL.

4.	The	PIC	and VO	will	communicate	verbally	at	all	times. 5.	UAS	operations	will	not	be	conducted	during	night. 6.	All	operations	will	be	conducted	under	visual	meteorological	conditions. 7.	The	UAS	will	land	with	a	minimum	30	percent	battery	reserve	remaining.

8.	T he	UAS	will	only	be	piloted	within	visual	line	of	sight. 9.	The	UAS	will	utilize	an	internal	flight	safety	feature	that	will	return	to	a preprogrammed	position	and	land	if	communication	with	the	remote	control	is	lost.Kirk	A.	Wester

– Section	333	Exemption	Petition

5 10.	Preflight	inspections	and	proto col	will	be	followed	prior	to	all	operations. 11.	The	UAS	will	abort	flight	in	the	event	of	unpredictable	obstacles	or	emergencies.

Public	Interest

I,	Kirk	A.	Wester ,	believe	the	use	of	a	UAS	in	lieu	of	a	manned	aircraft	would	enhance safety	and	reduc e	the	environmental	impact	compared	to	similar	operations conducted	with	a	manned	aircraft	carrying	a	crew	and	flammable	fuel.

The	use	of	a	UAS	in	the	real	estate	industry	provides	both	the	buyer	and	seller	with a	higher	level	of	marketing	and	service.	T he	UAS	is	able	to	provide	a	view	which encompasses	the	entire	property	in	a	single	photo	or	short	video	clip.	When compared	to	similar	operations,	utilizing	a	UAS	poses	much	less	of	a	safety	concern for	the	general	public	with	less	fuel,	time,	noise	and	ot her	resources.

Privacy

All	flights	will	occur	over	private	or	controlled	areas	with	the	owner's	consent. Capturing	people	in	images	will	rarely	occur.	If	a	person	is	captured	in	a	collected image	they	will	have	consented	prior	to	filming	or	otherwise	h ave	agreed	to	being	in the	area	prior	to	the	filming	taking	place.

Sincerely,

Kirk	A.	Wester