Re: Exemption Request Pursuant To Section 333 of the FAA Reform Act of 2012 

Dear Sir or Madam: 

I am writing pursuant to the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012 (the "Reform Act") and 

the procedures contained in 14 C.F .R. 11, to request that Andy Caldwell, owner and and 

operator of small UAS, be exempted from the Federal Aviation Regulations (FAR's) listed below. 

The exemption is necessary to operate a small unmanned aircraft system (UAS) commercially in 

airspace regulated by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). These operations will be 

conducted within and under the conditions outlined herein or as may be established by the FAA 

as required by Section 333.§11.81. It is requested that the following aspects of Section 333 of 

the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012 be considered: 

Petition for Exemption under Section #333 of the FAA Modernizations and Reform Act of 2012 

and 14 CFR Part 11 

1. Name and Address

Andy Caldwell | Owner 

Genesis One Productions, LLC 

6000 Brook Valley Run 

Monroe, NC 28110 

704-839-1920 

andy@genesisoneproductions.org 

2. Describe how the proposed USA operation will be safely conducted to minimize 

risk to the NAS or to persons and property on the ground.

• Petitioner and Operator will be in control of a DJI Phantom 2 Quadcopter for low flying aerial 

photography and videography with commercial use.

• Operator has conducted over 10 hours of educational UAS instruction and over 20 hours of 

flight time with the Phantom 2 Quadcopter.

• Operator always uses the Prop guards to ensure safety to persons and property while in flight 

and on the ground.

• Pursuant to receiving an Exemption for the FAA, the owner and operator will abide by 

the “ blanket” COA as mentioned in the following statement:
As of March 23, 2015, the FAA will automatically grant a “blanket” COA for flights at or 

below 200 feet to any UAS operator with a Section 333 exemption, provided the aircraft 

weighs less than 55 pounds, operations are conducted during daytime Visual Flight Rules 

(VFR) conditions and within visual line of sight (VLOS) of the pilots, and stay certain 

distances away from airports or heliports:

• 5 nautical miles (NM) from an airport having an operational control tower; or

• 3 NM from an airport with a published instrument flight procedure, but not an operational

tower; or

• 2 NM from an airport without a published instrument flight procedure or operational 

tower; or

• 2 NM from a heliport with a published instrument flight procedure

3. Describe any procedures that you would implement:

• Pre-flight inspections & Pre-flight log

• Safety Zone

o Operator reviews location for potential inclement weather, wind and obstacles (i.e. 

power lines.)

o Operator checks any solar activity on a Geomagnetic Index via the Magnetic Storms 

Application.

4. Regarding the Unmanned Aircraft PIC

• Operator has approximately 20 hours of flight time, inspection and maintenance sessions.

• Operator carries a First-Aid Kit when during UAS operation.

5. Regarding the Operation of the Unmanned Aircraft

• Petitioner is seeking relief for following reasons:

o Petitioner requests to be permitted for commercial operation of a small UAS PIC 

operating the UAS will have accumulated and logged, in a manner consistent with 14 

CFR 61.51(b), at least 20 hours logged as a UAS pilot with a multi-rotor UAS.

o The activities being proposed by this petitioner are in a very controlled and open area. 

The flights would be confined to over flight of the client real estate at the request of 

and with permission from the land owner, and maintain a distance of more than 50 

feet away from any buildings, persons, active highways or railroads, and below the 400 

feet AGL limitation.

o N Number Reservation

Your payment has been submitted to Pay.gov and the details are below. 

If you have any questions or you wish to cancel this payment, please contact 

the Aircraft Registry at (405) 954-3131.

Application Name: N Number Reservation

Pay.gov Tracking ID: 25MMOD6R

Agency Tracking ID: 201508042227488487NN
Transaction Type: Sale Transaction

Date: Aug 4, 2015 11:29:16 PM

Account Holder Name: Robert A. Caldwell

Transaction Amount: $10.00

Billing Address: 6000 Brook Valley Run City: Monroe

State/Province: NC Zip/Postal Code: 28110 Country: USA

Card Type: Visa Card Number: ************8853

o Petitioner always checks for No-Fly Zone areas and any other preventable issues that 

may impede any UAS operation.

o Petitioner inspects the Phantom 2 batteries, rotors and landing gear to ensure all parts 

are working properly.

o Petitioner inspects area for any obstacles or obstructions that would impede flight for 

the UAS or distract me the operator to keep line of sight during flight - anything 

to minimize risk to the NAS or to persons and property on the ground.

o Operating Frequency Used for Phantom 2 Remote Controller (Transmitter): 2.4 GHz ISM.

o Operator DOES NOT currently use any wifi devices (i.e. using Mobile iPhone or Android 

platform to connect via wifi with GoPro Hero3 wifi for live viewing. This is known to be 

very hazardous to NAS or people and property on the ground while in flight due to 

signals with the Phantom 2 crossing signals which could create a possible Fly-Away 

scenario.)

6. Regarding the Unmanned Aircraft PIC

• Petitioner is the only PIC who will be directly responsible for the operation of the UAS.

• Petitioner does not use any form of medication, alcohol or any other drug that would impair 

use of UAS.

7. Regarding the Operation of the Unmanned Aircraft

• Preparation is imperative for the PIC! One does not simply open the box and start flying the 

UAS. The petitioner was cognitive in researching and watching informational videos on 

safety precautions and operations for the DJI Phantom 2 Quadcopter.

• PIC does not allow UAS during low-altitude flight to go out of sight and uses no Live Wireless 

Monitors during flight operation. (Less distractions make for a safer and efficient flight.)

• PIC maintains flight visibility (Visual Line of Sight - VLOS) AT ALL TIMES.

• PIC seeks exemption for low-altitude commercial use primarily for the use in commercial/ 

residential real estate areas, construction areas as well as inspection needs.

• DJI Aircraft firmware for the models being used includes systems for: Blocking take-off in 

restricted areas around airports.

o Automatic Return-To-Launch-Site and land upon loss of control signal (see document 

provided)

o Automatic remote monitoring and warning of low battery condition (30%)
In summary, the Petitioner/ PIC requests exemption from Section 333 of the FAA Reform Act of 

2012 in order to commercially use his owned Phantom 2 Quadcopter for aerial photography and 

video under suggested safety and FAA guidelines submitted in this petition. Thank you for 

taking the time to consider my petition for exemption. I have gained more of an understanding 

of how important this process has been and will strongly encourage other inspiring UAS 

operators to further educate themselves in this growing industry!

Respectfully Submitted,

Andy Caldwell