Coldwell Banker First Realty 

Fargo, ND 58103 

Phone: 701-293-3423 

September 14, 2015

U.S. Department of Transportation Docket Management System 

1200 New Jersey Ave., SE 

Washington, DC 20590 

Dear Sir or Madam: 

This application is being submitted on my own behalf without legal council or consulting services. 

Pursuant to Section 333 of the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012 (the Reform Act) and 14 

C.F.R. Part 11, Coldwell Banker First Realty, operator of Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (“SUASs”)

equipped to conduct aerial photography and videography, hereby applies for an exemption from the

listed Federal Aviation Regulations (“FARs”) to allow commercial operation of its SUASs, 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 333.1.

As described more fully below, the requested exemption would permit the operation of small, 

unmanned and relatively inexpensive SUAS under controlled conditions in airspace that is 1) limited 2) 

predetermined and 3) controlled. The proposed exemption, if granted, would allow Coldwell Banker 

First Realty to conduct commercial operations of small unmanned aircraft systems (“SUAS”) meeting or 

exceeding all of the operational and safety requirements Congress has set forth in Section 333. 

Coldwell Banker First Realty is the largest full service Real Estate firm in the Upper Midwest that plans 

to exploit the capabilities of Unmanned Aerial Systems to offer a multitude of services, including: Real 

Estate Photography and Videography, Aerial Surveying, and Educational and Research Operations. 

These services would be implemented as strategic Marketing Tools. They would be utilized in 

brochures, the company's official website, and local advertising. The footage provided by the SUAS 

would allow a unique perspective for the potential client. This unique perspective would ultimately aid 

the process of making an educated and thorough decision in acquiring and/or selling property. 

Coldwell Banker First Realty holds its clients' well being as the number one priority. The use of the

SUAS would play a vital role to the company, but more importantly it would better the clients' future 

investment. 

Statutory Authority Section 333, titled “Special Rules for Certain Unmanned Aircraft Systems”, 

provides a mechanism for seeking expedited FAA authorization of safe civil UAS operations in the NAS. 

Section 333(a) states that the FAA “shall determine if certain unmanned aircraft systems may operate 

safely in the national airspace system before completion of the (comprehensive) plan and rulemaking 

required by section 332(b)(1) of this Act or the guidance required by section 334 of this Act.” In Section 

332(b)(1), Congress made it clear that Section 333 provides a mechanism for 

“expedited operation authorization” if several factors are met. Petitioner meets all requirements to 

permit FAA approval of commercial UAS operations. 
The Petitioner Requests Relief From the Following: 

Regulations from which the exemption is requested: 

14 C.F.R. Part 21 

14 C.F.R. 45.23 (b) 

14 C.F.R. 61.113(a) and (b) 14 C.F.R. 91.7 (a) 

14 C.F.R. 91.9 (b) (2) 

14 C.F.R. 91.109 

14 C.F.R. 91.119 

14 C.F.R. 91.121 

14 C.F.R. 91.151(a) 

14 C.F.R. 91.203 (a) & (b) 

14 C.F.R. 91.205 (b) 

14 C.F.R. 91.215 

14 C.F.R. (91.401 - 91.417) 

Unmanned Aircraft System 

SUASs are oftentimes seen as superior to helicopters due to the smaller device's cheaper equipment 

and personnel cost, reduced noise and as such, a much smaller environmental impact which promotes 

public safety. 

We are petitioning for exemption to enable Coldwell Banker First Realty to operate a DJI Inspire 1 

equipped with three-axis gimbals and using High-Def. cameras. This SUAS has a built- in capability to 

limit the height it flies above the ground, to limit the radius of the distance it flies from the operator and 

to exclude it from Class B, C and D airspace including a no fly zone feature. The Inspire 1 also has the 

failsafe function of the Naza-M autopilot system, which means when the communication between the 

Main Controller and the transmitter is disconnected, the outputs of all command sticks from controller 

will go to the center position. If the GPS signal is good enough, the system will automatically trigger 

Return to Home and will land safely. 

The above specifications meet with the Model Aircraft Operating Standards as set below: 

• Coldwell Banker First Realty will only operate its SUAS in line of sight of a pilot and/or

observer and will operate at sites that are a 'sufficient distance' from populated areas

within the sterile area described in the FOPM. Such operations will insure that the SUAS

will "not create a hazard to users of the national airspace system or the public."

• When flying SUAS within 3 miles of an airport, airport operators will be notified and the

operator will give the right of way to avoid flying in the proximity of full-scale aircraft.

• Maximum flight time for each operational flight will be 30 minutes.
• Flights will be terminated at 25% battery power reserve should that occur prior to the

30 minute limit.

• The SUAS will be programmed so that it will not be operated at an altitude of more

than 400 feet AGL, and not more than 200 feet above an elevated platform from which

filming is planned.

• Minimum crew for each operation will consist of the SUAS Pilot and Visual Observer.

• The SUAS operated by the petitioner weighs less than 55 pounds, including the payload

(i.e. camera, lens, and gimbal).

• The SUAS will operate at speeds of no more than 50 knots, can hover, and can

simultaneously move vertically and horizontally.

• Given the small size of the SUAS and the restricted sterile environment within which

they will operate, our SUAS operations adhere to the Reform Act's safety requirements. 

The SUAS, powered by batteries, is smaller, lighter and more maneuverable than larger aircraft running

on combustible fuel, it operates at lower altitudes with no people on board and will thereby reduce 

current risk levels and thereby enhance safety and diminish the likelihood of death or serious bodily 

injury. With a small payload and maximum flight time of only 30 minutes, this offers little or no risk to 

national security. 

Low level oblique photos and video from several angles are far more effective than ground based 

imagery for displaying the characteristics of large, complex properties with several buildings and large 

trees. The applicants in the past have chartered 2-seat full-sized helicopters for this purpose, which has 

proven more costly than many potential clients have been able to afford. The benefits of reduced cost 

and improved quality of presentation from the SUAS will be valuable to and benefit many buyers and

sellers of Real Estate property. 

Additionally, we request that we be allowed to use our system to benefit first responders nearby who 

might require assistance, including fire fighters, the police, the sheriff, et al., while remaining subject to 

all limitations cited in this application as we do so. 

a. No flight will be made with a Gross weight exceeding 55 pounds;

b. All operations must occur in FAA Class G airspace at no more than 400 ft. AGL, at an

airspeed of no more than 25 knots and no further than 3/4 NM from the PIC;

c. All operations must utilize a visual observer (VO). The VO and PIC must be able to

communicate by voice at all times during a flight operation;

d. Operations will be restricted to flights over private property with the permission of the

property owner;

e. All required permits will be obtained from state and local government prior to

operation;

f. Coldwell Banker First Realty will not operate over densely populated areas;

g. Coldwell Banker First Realty will not be operating over any open-air assembly of people;

h. Coldwell Banker First Realty will not be operating over heavily trafficked roads;
i. Coldwell Banker First Realty will not be operating within 5 NM of an airport or heliport;

We respectfully request exemption under Section 333 to Coldwell Banker First Realty to operate 

efficient, limited, low-risk commercial SAUS operations for the activities stated, respecting at all times 

the space and privacy of citizens and property whilst keeping our skies safe. 

Sincerely, 

Jesse R. Craig, Owner

Coldwell Banker First Realty 

www.coldwellbankerfm.com 

jcraig@craigprop.com 

701-293-3423
EXEMPTION REQUESTS AND EQUIVALENT LEVEL OF SAFETY 

Coldwell Banker First Realty requests an exemption from the following regulations as well as any

additional regulations that may technically apply to the operation of the SUAS System: 

14 CFR Part 21, Airworthiness Certificates 

This part establishes the procedures for the issuance of an airworthiness certificate. While the FAA 

continues to work to develop airworthiness standards for Unmanned Aerial Systems, we request an 

experimental certificate be issued for the DJI Inspire 1 under either or both of the following provisions: 

21.191 Experimental certificates. Experimental certificates are issued for the following purposes: 

a. Research and development. Testing new aircraft design concepts, new aircraft

equipment, new aircraft installations, new aircraft operating techniques, or new uses for

aircraft.

b. Showing compliance with regulations. Conducting flight tests and other operations to

show compliance with the airworthiness regulations including flights to show

compliance for issuance of type and supplemental type certificates, flights to

substantiate major design changes, and flights to show compliance with the function

and reliability requirements of the regulations. Since the experimental certificate can be

used for commercial purposes such as market surveys, sales demonstrations, and

customer crew training, we would expect that an experimental certificate would permit

our commercial purpose as well. The aircraft will not carry persons or property, will not

carry fuel, and will only fly under strict operational requirements. Combined with the

SUAS's lightweight, being constructed primarily of carbon fiber and plastic, we propose

that the SUAS will be at least as safe, if not safer, than a conventionally certificated

aircraft performing the same mission. If an experimental airworthiness certificate is not

appropriate for this application, then we request an exemption of 14 CFR Part 21,

Subpart H, and the requirement for an airworthiness certificate in general, citing the

equivalent level of safety outlined in the previous paragraph.

14 CFR 45.23 Display of marks; general and 45.29 Size of marks. These regulations provide that each 

aircraft must display "N" and the aircraft's registration number in letters at least 3 inches high. 

Additionally, the aircraft must display the word "EXPERIMENTAL" in letters at least 2 inches high near 

the entrance to the cabin, cockpit, or pilot station. The SUAS does not have an entrance in which the 

word "EXPERIMENTAL" can be placed, and may not have a registration number assigned to it by the 

FAA. We propose to achieve an equivalent level of safety by including the word "EXPERIMENTAL" in the 

placard on the top of the aircraft, as shown above, where the PIC (Pilot In Control), VO (Visual Observer) 

and others in the vicinity of the aircraft while it is preparing for launch will be able to see the 

designation. Additionally, we feel that the permanent placard discussed in the previous paragraph will 

provide the aircraft's registration information at the ground station. Finally, we will display at the ground 

station a high contrast flag or banner that contains the words "Unmanned Aircraft Ground Station" in 

letters 3 inches high or greater. Since the aircraft will operate within 3/4 NM of the ground station, the 

banner should be visible to anyone that observes the aircraft and chooses to investigate its point of 

origin. 

14 CFR 61.113 Private pilot privileges and limitations: Pilot in Command and 61.133 Commercial pilot 

privileges and limitations. The regulation provides that no person that holds a Private Pilot certificate 

may act as pilot in Command of an aircraft for compensation or hire. Subparagraph (b) allows a private 
pilot to act as pilot in command of an aircraft in connection with any business or employment if: (1) The 

flight is only incidental to that business or employment; and (2) The aircraft does not carry passengers or 

property for compensation or hire. Our proposed operations require that the PIC must hold at least a 

Recreational Pilot Certificate issued by the FAA and since the aircraft cannot carry passengers or 

property, we feel we meet the intent of 61.113 Subparagraph (b) even though the intent of this 

application is to conduct a business. 

14 CFR 91.7 Prohibits the Operation of an aircraft without an airworthiness certificate. As no such 

certificate will be applicable in the form contemplated by the FARs, this Regulation is inapplicable. 

14 CFR 91.9 Civil aircraft flight manual, marking, and placard requirements. This regulation provides 

that no person may operate an aircraft unless a current, approved flight manual is in the aircraft. We 

assume that the intent of this requirement is to ensure that flight manual information is available to the 

aircrew while operating the aircraft. We request an exemption to this requirement since the aircraft is 

not only too small to carry documentation, the documentation would not be available to the crew 

during flight operations. To obtain an equivalent level of safety and meet the intent of 91.9, we propose 

that a current, approved SUAS Flight Manual must be available to the crew at the ground station 

anytime the aircraft is in, or preparing for, flight. 

14 CFR 91.109 Flight Instruction; Simulated instrument flight and certain flight tests. The regulation 

states, "No person may operate a civil aircraft that is being used for flight instruction unless that aircraft 

has fully functioning dual controls." The SUAS System ground- based control station consists of a small 

hand-held radio transmitter and while it does not offer a second set of "controls", both the student and 

instructor can, and will, operate the single set of controls simultaneously. With both student and 

instructor having "hands-on" the controls during flight, we feel that this technique meets the intent 

91.109 and provides an equivalent level of safety. 

91.119 Minimum safe altitudes: General. The regulation states that over sparsely populated areas the 

aircraft cannot be operated closer than500 feet to any person, vessel, vehicle, or structure. Since the 

typical mission of the SUAS would be photography or survey of persons, vessels, vehicles or structures it 

would be necessary to operate closer than 500 feet to the items listed. Operations will only be flown 

over property or persons where permission has been obtained and careful pre-flight planning has been 

performed. The aircraft will be operated at a low altitude allowing, if a power unit fails, an emergency 

landing without undue hazard to persons or property on the surface. Therefore we maintain that due to 

the small size of the UAS, the hazard to persons, vehicles and structures is minimal compared to manned 

aircraft, which should be considered in granting the exemption. 

CFR 91.121 Altimeter settings. The regulation requires that aircraft shall maintain cruising altitudes by 

reference to an altimeter setting available within 100 NM of the aircraft. The SUAS will always fly below 

400 feet AGL and will not need to maintain cruising altitudes in order to prevent conflict with other 

aircraft. An Above Ground Level altimeter measurement above the launch and recovery point is 

transmitted via radio from the SUAS on-board computer to the display screen held by the PIC, providing 

a constantly updated AGL readout. 

14 CFR 91.151 Fuel requirements for flight in VFR conditions. The regulation provides 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 to fly after that for at least 30 minutes. We feel the intention of this 

paragraph is to provide an energy reserve as a safety buffer for delays to landing. The SUAV is battery 

operated and the maximum duration of flight from a single battery charge is 12 minutes with a 20% 

reserve. Since the aircraft will never fly more than 3f4 NM from the point of intended landing, a full 
battery charge at launch will ensure that we meet the reserve energy requirement of this paragraph. We 

request an exemption to the word "fuel" and ask for an equivalent interpretation with the word 

"energy". 

14 CFR 91.203(a) & (b) Civil aircraft: Certifications required. The regulation provides that an 

airworthiness certificate, with the registration number assigned to the aircraft and a registration 

certificate must be aboard the aircraft. Additionally, subparagraph (b) provides that the airworthiness 

certificate be "displayed at the cabin or cockpit entrance so that it is legible to passengers or crew." At a 

maximum gross weight of 5.3 pounds, the SUAS is too small to carry documentation, does not have an 

entrance, and is not capable of carrying passengers or crew. To obtain an equivalent level of safety and 

meet the intent of 91.203, we propose that documents deemed appropriate for this aircraft by the FAA 

will be co-located with the crew at the ground control station and available for inspection upon request. 

In order to identify the aircraft, we propose that the information found on airworthiness and 

registration certificates be permanently affixed to the aircraft via placard containing the following 

information plus the word "EXPERIMENTAL" to satisfy the requirement of 14 CFR 45.23. 

14 CFR Subpart E (91.401- 91.417) - Maintenance, Preventive Maintenance, Alterations The regulation 

provides that the operator is primarily responsible for maintaining the aircraft in an airworthy condition, 

including compliance with part 39 and 43. Paragraphs 91.407 and 91.409 require that the aircraft be 

"approved for return to service by a person authorized under 43.7" after maintenance and inspection. It 

is our intention that the PIC perform maintenance and inspection of the aircraft and "be authorized to 

approve the aircraft for return to service." The PIC will ensure that the aircraft is in an airworthy 

condition prior to every flight and in addition conduct detailed inspections after every two hours of 

flight. Maintenance performed by the PIC is limited to repairing small cracks, replacing a propeller, 

checking electrical connections and updating software and firmware for the on-board computer. All 

other maintenance will be performed by the manufacturer or their designated repair facility. The PIC will 

document work performed in accordance with 91.417. We feel that due to the size, construction, and 

simplicity of the aircraft, the PIC can ensure an equivalent level of safety. 

Safety and Benefits of the SUAS 

Coldwell Banker First Realty will be using the SUAS in a variety of applications that generally require 

expensive full-size manned aircraft to complete. Small, light, unmanned aerial vehicles offer a myriad of

benefits over the use of full-sized manned aircraft for film and still photography. Replacing significantly 

larger manned aircraft carrying crew and flammable fuel with small SUAS carrying no passengers or 

crew creates a much greater margin of safety for the pilots and crew. By granting Coldwell Banker First 

Realty requested exemptions, the FAA will help drive development of safe and successful commercial 

SUAS operations and will advance the public knowledge base for such operations. Coldwell Banker First 

Realty is committed to promoting the SUAS research efforts of policymakers including the FAA, NASA, 

DOD and DARPA by sharing data from its commercial SUAS operations and serving as a resource for 

future SUAS research operations. Thus, the FAA has good cause to grant this Petition. 
Conclusion 

As pointed out in this application, the SUAS which our company would use, under authorization by the 

US DOT-FAA, is a small, light-weight device operated within the line of sight of the Pilot-in-Command 

(PIC), less than 400 feet above the ground and outside 5 miles from any airport, heliport, seaplane 

base, spaceport, or other location with aviation activities, unless the air traffic control authorities (ATC) 

have been notified and have authorized each flight within a radius of this distance. 

Our SUAS has proven capability for controlled flight. It is a devices offered for general sale on the 

market around the world and has often been used as Model Aircraft in the USA. We are certain that 

the studies conducted until now by the FAA, about Section 332, Public Law 112-95, 2014, have already 

provided you with the assurances on the airworthiness of the SUAS such as ours. 

For the foregoing reasons, the exemptions requested herein should be granted and Coldwell Banker 

First Realty should be permitted to conduct small SUAS operations in accordance with its manuals and 

all other operating parameters deemed necessary and appropriate by the FAA. The submission of this 

application and its contents is the best demonstration that indeed it is possible to pursue the 

authorization process so that some SUASs may be used for legitimate commercial activities and under 

reasonably safe conditions. 
2731 12th Ave. S Fargo, ND 58103 

E-Mail: jcraig@craigprop.com 

Web: www.coldwellbankerfm.com 

Phone: 701-293-3423