February 25, 2016 

U.S. Department ofTransportation 

Docket Management System 

1200NewJersey Ave., SE 

Washington, DC 20590 

Re; ReQUest for Summary Grant of Exemption under Section 333 of the FAA Reform Act 

and Part llof the Federal Ayjation Regulations 

Dear Madam or Sir, 

Pursuant to Section 333 of the FAA Modernization and Refonn Act of 2012 (the "Refonn Act") 

and 14 C.F.R. Part 11 ,The Lane Construction Corp., an engineering and construction company, an operator of 

the eBee ("eBee») Small Unmanned Aircraft System ('sUAS') seeks a summary grant of exemption from the 

Federal Aviation Regulations ("F ARs") listed below based on exemption 11136 previously issued 

by the Federal Aviation Administration on January 5, 2015: 

• 14 C.F.R. 61.133(a) (b) 

• 14 C.F.R. 91.7(b) 

• 14C.F.R.91.119 

• 14C.F.R.91.15l(a) 

• 14 CFRSubpart E(91.401-91.417) 

The requested exemption would authorize commercial operations using the eBee for aerial imaging and 

survey mapping for safety and monitoring of secured and controlled construction site. The sUAS operations 

will be subject to strict operating requirements defined in the eBee user manual (The Lane Construction Corp. 

requests the FAA treat the eBee training program as proprietary under 14 C.F.R. IIJS(b) and does not include 

this document in the public docket) in order to ensure at least an equivalent level of safety to currently 

authorized operations using manned aircrafts. 

The eBee will be operated by an individual who fulfill the following requirements: 

• Has successfully passed a manufacturer's training program for the eBee; The Lane Construction 

Corp. requests the FAA treat the eBee training pro gam as proprietary under 14 C.F .R. 11.35(b) 

and does not include this document in the public docket. 

1. CHARACTERISTICS OF THE AIRCRAFT 

The eBee is a small (37.8 inches wingspan) and ultra-light (maximum take-off weight of I. 7 

(pounds) platform made of flexible foam that performs pre-programmed precision aerial 

mapping missions thanks to the on-board GPS and the related flight management software 

(eMotion) that allows the operator to plan safely and efficiently a mission in 30, and then monitor it in 

real-time 

Thanks to the embedded camera, protected by a foam envelope, the eBee takes a collection of 

high-definition still images that are used later to generate maps and contour lines of the surveyed 

area. 
The four main characteristics of the eBee are: 

a. Very light weight 

The eBee is so light that the operator can launch it by hand and let it land on almost any surface 

without requiring a parachute or landing net {belly land) .Its low impact energy (38 J in case of 

a controlled emergency landing) also significantly reduces the risk of hazardous situations. 

Finally, the wings of the eBee are detachable and made of flexible foam with no sharp or hard 

edges and almost no internal strengthening structure. 

b. Electric-powered 

The eBee is electric powered. A brushless engine technology makes it silent and reliable. The 

propeller is attached with a rubber band to the body of the plane so that it can easily flex away in 

case of contact with any object. 

c. Semi-automatic fli ght 

The artificial intelligence incorporated within the eBee autopilot system continuously analyzes 

data from the Inertial Measurement Unit and from the onboard GPS and takes care of all the 

aspects of the flight under the supervision of the operator. 

d. Option for Manual control 

Additionally, the eBee provides an override capability that allows the operator to take manual 

actions during the flight (Go to Home, Go Land, Hold and Resume the mission) and also suspend 

automated operations and take manual control of the aircraft should it become necessary to 

respond emergent circumstances, thanks to the remote controller provided with the system. 

2. APPLICATIONS 

The Lane Construction Corp. intends to use the eBee to conduct imaging flights for the purpose of 

safety and survey mapping. The aircraft will be used over controlled access property and only be 

used to image property for which we have been contracted by the land owner to do so. Images 

will be used to increase production, identify environmental land issues and allow for land use 

planning. 

3. APPLICABLE LEGAL STANDARD UNDER SECTION 333 

a. Airworthiness assessment of the eBee 

The Lane Construction Corp. notes that the Federal Aviation Administration has already issued an 

exemption specific to the eBee to the previously listed regulations for the same purpose in which 

The Lane Construction Corp. intends to use the sUAS 

Moreover, SenseFly obtained flight approvals for the eBee {delivered by national civil aviation 

authorities) in many countries, among others: 

• Switzerland (flight approval for VLOS operations) 

• Canada (flight approval for VLOS operations) 

• Australia (flight approval for VLOS operations) 

• France (flight approval for Extended-VLOS operations) 

• Germany (flight approval for VLOS operations) 

• United Kingdom (flight approval for VLOS operations) 

• Norway (flight approval for VLOS operations) 
b. Operating requirements 

A summary grant of exemption to The Lane Construction Corp. for the eBee will be subject to the 

same operating conditions issued by the Federal Aviation Administration, without deviation or 

alteration, in exemption No.lll36 on January 5, 2015.The main restrictions are summarized 

below: 

1. Operations authorized by this grant of exemption are limited to the following aircraft 

described in the operating documents which is a fixed-wing aircraft weighing approximate ly 

1.5 pounds: senseFly eBee ( eBee ). Proposed operations of any other aircraft will require a 

new petition or a petition to amend this grant. 

2. The UA may not be flown at an indicated airspeed exceeding 70 knots. 

3. The UA must be operated at an altitude of no more than 400 feet above ground level (AGL), 

as indicated by the procedures specified in the operating documents. All altitudes reported 

to A TC must be in feet AGL. 

4. The UA must be operated within visual line of sight (VLOS) of the PIC at all times. This 

requires the PIC to be able to use human vision unaided by any device other than corrective 

lenses, as specified on the PIC's FAA-issued ainnan medical certificate. 

5. All operations must utilize a visual observer (VO).The VO may be used to satisfy the VLOS 

requirement as long as the PIC always maintains VLOS capability. The VO and PIC must be 

able to communicate verbally at all times. The PIC must be designated before the flight and 

cannot transfer his or her designation for the duration of the flight. The PIC must ensure that 

the VO can perform the functions prescribed in the operating documents. 

6. The operating documents and this grant of exemption must be maintained and made available 

to the Administrator upon request. If a discrepancy exists between the conditions and 

limitations in this exemption and the procedures outlined in the operating documents, the 

conditions and limitations herein take precedence and must be followed. Otherwise, the 

operator must follow the procedures as outlined in its operating documents. The operator 

may update or revise its operating documents. It is the operator's responsibility to track such 

revisions and present updated and revised documents to the Administrator upon request. 

The operator must also present updated and revised documents if it petitions for extension 

or amendment to this grant of exemption. If the operator determines that any update or 

revision would affect the basis, upon which the FAA granted this exemption, then the 

operator must petition for amendment to its grant of exemption. The FAA's sUAS 

Integration Office (AFS-80) may be contacted if questions arise regarding updates or revisions 

to the operating documents. 

7. Prior to each flight the PIC must inspect the sUAS to ensure it is in a condition for safe flight. 

If the inspection reveals a condition that affects the safe operation of the sUAS, the aircraft 

is prohibited from operating until the necessary maintenance has been performed and the 

sUAS is found to be in a condition for safe flight. The Ground Control Station must be 

included in the preflight inspection. All maintenance and alterations must be properly 

documented in the aircraft records. 

8. Any sUAS maintenance or alterations that affect the sUAS operation or flight characteristics, 

e.g. replacement of a flight critical component, must undergo a functional test flight. The 

PIC who conducts the fu nctional test flight must make an entry in the aircraft records. 
9. The pre-flight inspection section in the operating documents must account for all 

discrepancies, i.e. inoperable components, items, or equipment, not already covered in the 

relevant sections of the operating documents. 

I 0. The operator must follow the sUAS aircraft/component, maintenance, overhaul, 

replacement, inspection, and life limit requirements. 

11. The operator must cany out its maintenance, inspections, and record keeping requirements, 

in accordance with the operating documents. Maintenance, inspection, and alterations must 

be noted in the aircraft records, including total flight hours, description of work 

accomplished, and the signature of the PIC returning the sUAS to service. 

12. Each sUAS operated under this exemption must comply with all manufacturer System and 

Safety Bulletins. 

13. The PIC must make an entry in the aircraft record of the corrective action taken against 

discrepancies discovered between inspections. 

14. The Pilot in Command (PIC) will be trained in flight, operations and safety procedures as 

detailed in the Flight Manual. 

15. The operator may not permit any PIC to operate unless that PIC has demonstrated through 

the operator's training that the PIC is able to safely operate the sUAS in a manner consistent 

with how the sUAS will be operated under this exemption, including evasive and emergency 

maneuvers and maintaining appropriate distances from persons, vessels, vehicles and 

structures. A record of training must be documented and made available upon request by the 

Administrator. Flights for the purposes of training the operator's PICs and VOs (training & 

proficiency, and experience-building), are permitted under the terms of this exemption. 

However, said training operations may only be conducted during dedicated training sessions. 

16. sUAS operations may not be conducted during night, as defined in 14 CFR 1.1. All operations 

must be conducted under visual meteorological conditions (VMC). Flights under special 

visual flight rules (SVFR) are not authorized . 

17. All operations shall be conducted in Class G airspace. 

18. The UA may not operate within 5 nautical miles of the airport reference point as denoted 

on a cunent FAA-published aeronautical chart. 

19. The UA 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. 

20. If the UA loses communications or loses its GPS signal, it must return to a pre-determined 

location within the planned operating area and land or be recovered in accordance with the 

operating documents. 

21. The PIC must abort the flight in the event of unpredicted obstacles or emergencies m 

accordance with the operating documents. 

22. The PIC is prohibited from beginning a flight unless (considering wind and forecast weather 

conditions) there is enough power to fly at nonnal cruising speed to the intended landing 

point and land the UA with 30% battery power remaining. 
23. The operator must obtain an Air Traffic Organization (ATO) issued Certificate of Waiver or 

Authorization (COA) prior to conducting any operations under this grant of exemption. This 

COA will also require the operator to request a Notice to Airman (NOT AM) not more than 

72 hours in advance, but not less than 48 hours prior to the operation. 

24. All aircraft operated in accordance with this exemption must be identified by serial number, 

registered in accordance with 14 CFR part 47,and have identification (NNumber) markings 

in accordance with 14 CFR part 45,Subpart C. Markings must be as large as practicable. 

25. Before conducting operations, the radio frequency spectrum used for operation and control 

of the UA must comply with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) or other 

appropriate government oversight agency requirements. 

26. The documents required under 14 CFR 91.9 and 91.203 must be available to the PIC at the 

Ground Control Station of the sUAS any time the aircraft is operating. These documents must 

be made available to the Administrator or any law enforcement official upon request. 

27. The UA must remain clear and yield the right of way to all other manned aviation operations 

and activities at all times. 

28. The sUAS may not be operated by the PIC from any moving device or vehicle. 

29. The UA may not be operated over congested or densely populated areas. 

30. Flight operations must be conducted at least 500 feet from all nonparticipating persons, 

vessels, vehicles, and structures unless: 

a. Barriers or structures are present that sufficiently protect nonparticipating persons 

from the UA and/or debris in the event of an accident. The operator must ensure that 

nonparticipating persons remain under such protection. If a situation arises where 

nonparticipating persons leave such protection and are within 500 feet of the UA, 

flight operations must cease immediately and/or; 

b. the aircraft is operated near vessels, vehicles or structures where the land 

owner/controller has granted permission and the PIC has made a safety assessment of 

the risk of operating closer to those objects and determined that it does not present 

an undue hazard, and 

c. operations nearer to the PIC, VO, operator trainees or essential persons do not present 

an undue hazard to those persons per§ 91.119(a). 

31. All operations shall be conducted over private or controlled-access property with pennission 

from the land owner/controller or authorized representative. Permission from land 

owner/controller or authorized representative will be obtained for each flight to be 

conducted. 

32. Any incident, accident, or flight operation that transgresses the lateral or vertical boundaries 

of the operational area as defined by the applicable COA must be reported to the FAA's sUAS 

Integration Office (AF5-80) within 24 hours. Accidents must be reported to the National 

Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) per instructions contained on the NTSB Web site: 

www .ntsb.gov. 
3. CONCLUSION 

This request is designed to follow up on previous efforts by the Federal Aviation Administration to 

determine equiva lent levels of safety for sUAS operations. By requesting a summary grant of 

exemption we hope to achieve expedited approval for sUAS operations to the public's benefit. 

Yours sincerely, 

/ Anthony Todd 

Corporate Survey Manager 

The Lane Construction Corp. 
ANNEX A: EXEMPTION REQUEST AND EQUIVALENT LEVEL OF SAFETY SHOWINGS UNDER 

APPLICABLE RULESSUBJECTTO EXEMPTION 

The Lane Construction Corp. requests an exemption from the following regulations as well as any 

additional regulations that may technically apply to the operation of the eBee: 

14 CFR 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. 

To obtain a commercial pilot certificate a candidate must demonstrate a level of aeronautical 

knowledge and aircraft handling beyond what is required to operate a sUAS. Our proposed operations 

would require that a Pilot-In-Command have the aeronautical knowledge and aircraft handling skills 

currently required obtaining a private pilot certificate. Given the lack of passengers or cargo on board 

the sUAS, controlled access operations area we operate in and the simplicity of the sUAS we believe 

that an equivalent level of safety can be achieved by requiring the Pilot in Command hold, at a 

minimum, a private pilot certificate and a third class medical certificate or U.S. Driver's license. 

14 CFR 91.7(a): Civil aircraft airworthiness 

This regulation requires that no person may operate a civil aircraft unless it is in airworthy condition. 

Should the exemption be granted allowing commercial operation of the eBee without an airworthiness 

certificate, no standard will exist for airworthiness of the eBee. Given the size of the aircraft and the 

previous airworthiness assessments given to the eBee, among others: 

• New Mexico State University: https://newscenter.nmsu.edu/Articles/view/10208/nmsu-uas-flighttest -center -conducts-ebee-airworthiness-assessment 

• USACE New Orleans, who coordinated with the Department of Army and the FAA to obtain 

all authorizations required in order to operate the eBee UAS for levee system monitoring, 

documentation of construction progress, and extensive oblique photography of USACE 

structures & activities 

An equivalent level of safety will be achieved by insuring compliance with the SenseFly manuals prior 

to each flight. 

14 CFR 91.119: Minimum Safe Altitudes 

The regulation provides that over sparsely populated areas the aircraft cannot be operated closer than 

500 feet to any person, vessel, vehicle, or structure. Since the aircraft will be operating at a maximum 

of 400 feet AGL, the eBee cannot comply with this requirement. 
The equivalent level of safety will be achieved because the eBee will only fly over private property 

with the pennission of the landowner. The operator will define before every flight a working area 

radius and a flight area ceiling, preventing the eBee to go beyond the flight area. The land owner and 

the persons who may be on the ground in the flight area will be briefed of the expected route of flight and 

the associated risks to persons and property on the ground. Due to the small size of the eBee and the 

material with which the eBee is built, the hazard to persons, vessels, vehicles, and structures is not 

comparable to manned aircraft and should be considered in granting the exemption. 

Moreover, the aircraft will not be operated over congested areas nor over any open-air assembly of 

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

landing without undue hazard to persons or property on the surface. 

14 CFR 91.151(a): 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. 

Given the area of operation for the eBee, believes that an equivalent level of safety is already 

achieved with the specific procedure preventing the eBee to accept a take-off order is the battery 

level is below a given value. Moreover, SenseFiy has integrated "low" and uncritical battery level 

warnings and implemented a "return to Home" (and '·Go Land") actions in these situations. 

14 CFR Subpart E (91.40191.417) ·Maintenance, Preventive Maintenance, and 

Alterations 

The regulation provides that the operator is primarily responsible for maintaining the aircraft in an 

airworthy condition, including compliance with Parts 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. Section 91.409(a)(2) requires an annual inspection for the issuance of an 

airworthiness certificate. Section 91.417(a) requires the owner or operator to keep records showing 

certain maintenance work that has been accomplished by certificated mechanics, under Part 43, or 

licensed pilots and records of approval of the aircraft for return to service. 

The Lane Construction Corp. proposes that the maintenance of the eBee will be accomplished by the 

owner/operator according to the maintenance manual, provided by SenseFiy. The Lane Construction 

Corp. requests the FAA treat the eBee training program as proprietary under 14 C.F .R. 11 .35(b) and 

not include this document in the public docket. 

An equivalent level of safety will be achieved because the eBee is small in size, it is not a complex 

mechanical device, it will carry no external payload, and it will operate only in restricted 

predetermined areas. Moreover, the operator is the person most familiar with the aircraft and is best 

suited to maintain the aircraft in an airworthy condition and to ensure an equivalent level of safety. 

Finally, before every flight, the eBee runs automatically a sequence of pre-flight tests to make sure 

that every sensor and every critical part is running properly. If a problem is detected, the eBee will 

not be able to be switched-on and a message error is displayed on the main screen of the flight 

management software. The operator can then refer to the maintenance manual to troubleshoot this 

issue. Several parts of the eBee are easily interchangeable (propellers, wings), which allows the 

operator to make sure the wings and propulsion system are always airworthy when a mission is 

initiated.