July 8, 2015

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

Ref: Exemption Request Section 333 of the FAA Reform Act

To Whom It May Concern,

In accordance with Section 333 of the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012 and 14 C.F.R. Part 11, The Oxios Agency, a licensed business in the State of Arizona, hereby applies for exemptions from the following Federal Aviation Regulati ons (FARs) in order to operate a small Unmanned Aircraft System ( UAS) for commercial applications in airspace that is governed by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). All flight operations will be conducted under the conditions and boundaries
outlin ed herein or as established by the FAA in accordance with Section 333.

The exemptions, as requested by t he Oxios Agency, would permit the provision of commercial services to customers that are in need of aerial imagery from a UAS. The Oxios Agency reques ts these exemptions in order to perform commercial flights in the following areas:

• Real Estate Photography

• Golf Course Photography

• Commercial Property Construction

• Aerial Inspection

• Special Events

All flights will be conducted over private or controlled access property with the consent and knowledge of the property owner or controlling party. All flight operations will maintain a 500 foot buffer from all nonparticipating persons, vessels, vehicles, and structures unless sufficient b arriers are in place to protect nonparticipating persons from undue harm. Flight operations will also only be operated near vessels, vehicles, and structures where the property owner/controller has granted permission and a safety assessment has been made.

All of t he Oxios Agenc y’s flight operations will be conducted by pilots that are holding current FAA Private, Student or Commercial Licenses with appropriate medical certificates. All visual observers (VO) will be trained to perform their required duties before flight operation s begin.



## REGULATIONS FROM WHICH AN EXEMPTION IS REQUESTED :

• 14 CFR 61.113(a)

• 14 CFR 91.7(a)

• 14 CFR 91.119(c)

• 14 CFR 91.121

_________________________________________________________________________________ The Oxios Agency | 18631 N. 1 st Ave | Phoenix, Arizona | (480) 233

- 7347• 14 CFR 91.151(a)

• 14 CFR Subpart E (91.401

– 91.417)



## THE UNMANNED AIRCRAFT SYSTEM (UAS) The proposed UAS and any future UAS used to perform services and flight training will be registered in accordance with 49 U.S.C. 44103, Registration of Aircraft, as well as 14 C.F.R Part 47, Aircraft Registration, and marked in accordance with 14 C.F.R. Part 45, Identification and Registration Mark ing.



## DJI Phantom 3 Professional The Oxios Agency is seeking this exemption in order to operate a DJI Phantom 3 Professional quadcopter equipped with the DJI Remote Controller Ground Control Station (GCS) , a 3

- axis Gimbal
and built

- in DJI 4K/12Megapixel camera. DJI’s Pilot app software will be the GCS operating system. Safety failsafe features equipped ensuring safe operations include:

• Geo fence capability that will limit the height and horizontal distance that the Phantom 3 can fly
from the operator.

• Return to Home and Land mode

- In the case of low battery or lost communication between the
Phantom 3 and the operator, the Phantom 3 will return to the point of takeoff and land itself. This mode can be manually turned on by the operator at any point in th e flight.

• Land mode

- Loss of GPS signal will engage land mode. The Phantom 3 will land automatically at
its current position if in a flight mode that requires GPS signal.

• Telemetry radio communication provides real time feedback

• GPS and Global Navigation Satellite System ( GLONASS ) combine to make the Phantom 3 completely aware of its location and relation to the pilot. It hovers more precisely, moves more

_________________________________________________________________________________ The Oxios Agency | 18631 N. 1 st Ave | Phoenix, Arizona | (480) 233

- 7347accurately, and locks onto satellites faster. With the new availability of GLONASS, a minimum of 36 satellites are available to the pilot around the world at any time

A list of the UAS specifications from the manufacturer’s operator manual is included in this petition.



## EXEMPTION REQUESTS AND EQUIVALENT LEVEL OF SAFETY
The Oxios Agency requests an exemption from the following regulations as well as any additional regulations found by the FAA to be necessary for safe and efficient UAS flight operations:

14 CFR 61.113(a), Private pilot privileges and limitations: Pilot in command This regulation states that no person holding a private pilot certificate may act as pilot in command of an aircraft that is carrying passengers or property for compensation or hire; nor may that person, for compensation or hire, act as pilot in c ommand of an aircraft. The extent of relief sought and reasons:
We believe that a Pilot in Command ( PIC ) with a current Third Class Private license or Student Pilot
license or higher along with a medical certificate has sufficient skill s and knowledge to complete operations, especially after completing a UAS knowledge and training course. We do not think that a commercial pilot license will significantly improve a PIC’s performance while operating a UAS

. The PIC of the UAS will be, or be under the direct supervision of, a FAA Certificated Private Pilot with current Third Class or higher medical certificate. It is believed that the operation and limitations set forth in the flight operati ons manual will equate to the safe operation of the UAS. Therefore, we ask for an exemption from 14 CFR 61.113(a) in order to operate commercially with the minimum of a private pilot license.

14 CFR 91.7(a) Ci vil aircraft airworthiness This regulation states that no person may operate a civil aircraft unless it is in an airworthy condition. The extent of relief sought and reasons:

T he DJI Phantom 3 Professional UAS does not require an airworthiness certificate in accordance with 14 C.F.R. Part 21, Subpart H. As such, the Oxios Agency submits that it will ensure that the UAS is in an airworthy condition, prior to every flight, by determining that the UAS is in compliance with the operating documents ( i.e., User Manuals, Maintenance Manuals, and Safety Guidelines issued by DJI), and that the UAS is in a condition for safe flight. Therefore, we request exemption from this regulation.

14 CFR 91.119(c) Minimum safe altitudes This regulation states that no person may operate an aircraft below 500 feet above the surface as well as within 500 feet of any person, vessel, vehicle, or structure. The extent of relief sought and reasons: We believe that, because of the nature of most UAS operations, an exemption i s required in order to allow operation closer than 500 feet to vessels, vehicles, or structures as long as permission is granted from the owning/controlling parties and an assessment is made to assure that people and property are
safe from undue harm. We a lso request that operations be allowed over congested areas as long as the operations stay within the following standards:

_________________________________________________________________________________ The Oxios Agency | 18631 N. 1 st Ave | Phoenix, Arizona | (480) 233

- 7347• Flight operations will remain 500 feet from all nonparticipating persons, vehicles, and structures
unless:

a. Barriers or structures are present that sufficiently protect nonparticipating pe rsons from debris
in the event of an accident.
b. Participating persons are made aware of the dangers of the UAS operation and the safety precautions that have been put into place.

c. The aircraft is operated near vessel, vehicles, or structures only where the p roperty owner/controller has granted permission and the PIC has made a safety assessment in regard to the close operation to these objects.
d. Operations near the PIC or VO do not present an undue hazard to the PIC or VO per 91.119(a).

e. All operations will be conducted over private or controlled

- access property with prior permission from the property owner/controller or authorized representative.

14 CFR 91.121 Altimeter settings This regulation requires each person operating an aircraft to maintain cruising al titude by reference to
an altimeter. The extent of relief sought and reasons: As our UAS does not utilize a standard barometric altimeter, we request exemption from 91.121 to the extent necessary to comply with applicable conditions and limitations. The altimeter reading for our UAS is calculated by GPS. The accurate and continuous readings that we receive from this GPS system allow us to operate the UAS below set minimums at all times. Therefore, we request exemption from this regulation.

14 CFR 91.151(a) Fuel requirements for flight in VFR conditions
Th is regulation states that no person may begin a flight in an airplane under day

- VFR conditions unless there is enough fuel to fly to the first point of intended landing and, after that, fly for an additional 30 minutes. This regulation is intended to creat e a safe flying environment by creating sufficient fuel

reserves. The extent of relief sought and reasons: Therefore, we do not request an exemption from this regulation but, instead, request that the term “fuel” be changed to “battery power.” We also req uest that our battery power reserve for our UAS operations be 30%. Our UAS has capabilities that allow the PIC to monitor battery power levels as well as a return to land feature that will engage when battery levels reach a critical level, therefore retur ning the UAS automatically to the point of takeoff.

14 CFR Subpart E (91.401

– 91.417) These regulations mandate stringent maintenance regulations that are designed to increase the safety of the flying environment by ensuring adequate inspections and serv icing of aircraft. The extent of relief sought and reasons: We are requesting exemption from these regulations because we believe that, due to the simplicity and the ease of repair, general and preventive maintenance can be performed by the PIC. The PIC is required to make a thorough preflight inspection before each operation. In the case of a discovery of faulty equipment, most replacement and repair can simply be done on site as long as repairs are of an

_________________________________________________________________________________ The Oxios Agency | 18631 N. 1 st Ave | Phoenix, Arizona | (480) 233

- 7347airworthy manner. Major repair will still have to b e performed by a licensed repair facility which will be logged in the UAS records.

We believe that our comprehensive preflight inspection, the simplicity of the UAS itself, the nature of
the UAS’s operations, and the fact that no passengers are on board the aircraft make our operations eligible for exemption from CFR Subpart E (91.401

– 91.417).



## EXERCISE OF PRIVEL E GES OUTSIDE THE UNITED STATES

The Oxios Agency request s exempti on privileges to operate the UAS outside of the United States, particularly in the country of M é xico. Our company offer s ma rketing services to golf course operators and management companies throughout México and also owns and manages two web sites that promote golf to to urists worldwide : GolfRockyPoint.net and Golfof Mexico.net . Being that our services
is based out of Phoenix, Arizona, the closest Mexico tourist destination and prime web site activity is
focused on Puerto Pe ñ asco, Sonora M é xico. At a minimum, the Oxios Agency requests to perform UAS operations specifically in the city of Puerto Pe ñ asco (also known as “ Rocky Point ” to Americans and
Canadian tourist s ) if a blanket authorization is not granted fo r the entire country. Secondary, tertiary
and other markets would include (Los Cabos, Cancun, En s enada , Nayarit and Puerto Vallarta vacation regions ). The Oxios Agency would exercise the same safety practices and procedures regulated by the

FAA for national UAS operations outli ned in this petition for services performed in M é xico

.



## PUBLIC INTEREST & SAFETY The enhanced safety of small unmanned UAS eliminates the greater risk alternatives when using larger manned aircraft, carrying fuels at low altitudes. In addition this relatively new technology provides clients access to photographic and videography services and information that were previously not financially cost effective. Conducting aerial acquisitions with a UAS, instead of manned air craft, will greatly benefit the public by drastically reducing the levels of air and noise pollution generated during traditional aerial video and still photography flight operations. By using battery power and electric
motors, our UAS will produce no air pollution, and is the most viable environmentally conscious alternative to the internal combustion engine aircraft that are typically utilized for aerial video and photography, while burning approximately 20

- 30 gallons per hour of leaded aviation fuel. Our UAS,
while reducing the carbon footprint during flights , will also eliminate noise pollution, as the UAS is propelled by a battery powered electric motor, rather than an internal combustion engine. The FAA, by granting the Oxios Agency’s exemp tion request, will serve to stimulate development of viable commercial UAS operations while guiding the public's understanding of how UAS can be legally and beneficially integrated into the National Air Space, NAS.



## FLIGHT OPERATIONS The operator and PIC will guarantee that operations adhere to strict standards as set below:

• Prior to their first operation, all Pilots in Command (PIC) employed by the Oxios Agency will complete a UAS training program that highlights critical areas including applicable regul ations and documents, charts, Small UAS Aerodynamics, Weather Factors and Safe Operating
Procedures.

_________________________________________________________________________________ The Oxios Agency | 18631 N. 1 st Ave | Phoenix, Arizona | (480) 233

- 7347• The PIC must show that they are able to safely operate the UAS in a safe manner before proceeding with operations.

• The UAS will be operated at airspeeds below 29 knots.

• The UAS will be operated below 400 feet above ground level (AGL) at all times.

• The UAS will be operated within visual line of sight (VLOS) at all times.

• All operations will utili ze a visual observer (VO). The UAS will be operated wit hin the visual line of sight (VLOS) of the PIC and VO at all times.

• The VO will not perform any other duties beyond assisting the PIC with seeing and avoiding traffic and other ground based obstacles.

• Proper preflight inspections will take place before e ach flight.

• The UAS may not operate within 5 nautical miles of an airport reference point unless a letter of agreement with that airport’s management is obtained or a Certificates of Waiver or Authorization (COA) is g ranted by the FAA for specific UAS o perations

• Operations will be conducted in accordance with a Notice to Airmen (NOTAM).

• The UAS may not be operated less than 500 feet below or less than 2,000 feet horizontally from a cloud or when visibility is less than 3 statute miles from the PIC.

• The PIC must maintain a battery reserve that allows the UA to return to point of landing at normal cruise speed and land with 30% battery power.

• The UAS must remain clear of and yield to all other air traffic.

• Flight operations will remain 500 feet from all nonparticipating persons, vehicles, and structures
unless:

a. Barriers or structures are present that sufficiently protect nonparticipating person from
debris in the event of an accident.
b. All participating persons will be made aware of the dangers of fly ing a UA and the safety precautions and features that are in place.

c. The aircraft is operated near vessel, vehicles, or structures where the property owner/controller has granted permission and the PIC has made a safety assessment in regard to the close ope ration to these objects.

_________________________________________________________________________________ The Oxios Agency | 18631 N. 1 st Ave | Phoenix, Arizona | (480) 233

- 7347d. Operations near the PIC or VO do not present an undue hazard to the PIC or VO per 91.119(a).

• All operations will be conducted over private or controlled

- access property with prior permission from the property owner/controller or a uthorized representative.



## ECONOMIC BENEFITS In addition to being safe and efficient, the petitioner’s UAS is also an economical alterna tive to using manned aircraft to conduct similar aerial operations. As such, operation of the UAS’s such as the Petitioners’ UAS will allow companies, like the Oxios Agency, to remain competitive and contribute to the growth of the U.S. economy. Specifical ly, with the rising cost of aviation fuel and the Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) regulatory actions phasing out leaded aviation fuels, U.S. owned and operated companies must adopt new and alternative technology in order to remain competitive. Oper ating the battery powered UAS is one such technology that not only allows companies greater operational flexibility compared to manned aircraft, but provides such flexibility without the high operational cost of a traditional manned aircraft.



## CONCLUSION

T he Oxios Agency is confident that the knowledge of the PIC, along with the strict safety standards set by the Oxios Agency, the FAA, and the physical safety properties of the UAS, will allow safe and efficient operations. Granting the present Petition will further the public interest by allowing the Oxios Agency

to safely, efficiently, and economically perform aerial video and photography of client sites, events, and landscape over certain areas of the United States. Additionally, use of the UAS will decrease congestion of the NAS, reduce pollution, and provide sign ificant benefits to the economy. Notably, the benefits of the Oxios Agency's proposed operation of the UAS will be realized without implicating any privacy

issues.

The Oxios Agency hereby requests exemption under Section 333 in order to pursue commercial UAV applications with the intent to provide customers with the safest, highest quality platform available.

Sincerely,

Jason Oxios , Owner

The Oxios Agency
18631 N. 1 st Ave Phoenix, AZ 85027

Attachments:

• DJI Phantom 3 Professional specifications from the manufacturer’s operator manual

_________________________________________________________________________________ The Oxios Agency | 18631 N. 1 st Ave | Phoenix, Arizona | (480) 233

- 7347