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Plyobotics Unmanned 

System Solutions LLC

November 5, 2015

U.S. Department of Transportation Docket

Management System

1200 New Jersey Ave., SE Washington, DC 20590

Re: Exemption Request Section 333 of the FAA Reform Act and Part 11 of the Federal

Aviation Regulations from 14 C.F.R. 45.23(b); 14 CFR Part 21; 14 CFR 61.113 (a) & (b);

91.7 (a); 91 .9 (b) (2); 91.103(b); 91 .109; 91.119; 91 .121;

91.151(a); 91.203(a) & (b); 91.405 (a); 91.407(a) (1); 91.409(a) (2); 91.417(a) & (b).

Dear Sir or Madam:

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

and 14 C.F.R. Part 11, Plyobotics Unmanned Systems Solutions hereby applies for an

exemption from the listed Federal Aviation Regulations ("FAR") to allow commercial

operation of its small UAV’s, 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.

Plyobotics Unmanned Systems Solutions plans to offer video inspection, photogrammetry,

photography, and research and design services for commercial purposes initially including:

1) Aerial Mapping in construction and mining industries.

2) Building and infrastructure inspections including, but not limited to, bridges, towers,

solar farms, pipelines and power lines.

3) Commercial video production for the advertising, marketing and real estate

industries.

4) Data collection for commercial and academic development.

Where towers and solar panel farms are concerned, Plyobotics Unmanned Systems 

Solutions will be operating within airspace previously reviewed by the FAA for the

construction of the tower therefore the airspace of the controlled operations area creates no

additional hazard to the national airspace. Approval of this exemption would therefore

create no safety concerns regarding national airspace and fulfill the Secretary of

Transportation's (the FAA Administrator's) responsibilities to " ... establish requirements for

the safe operation of such aircraft systems in the national airspace system." Section 333(c)

of the Reform Act.

Plyobotics Unmanned System Solutions (Plyobotics) was founded in 2015 as minority 

owned company with half of its managing officers being US veterans. Plyobotics currently 

has a qualified commercial pilot, technicians, and a full service engineering staff. 

Plyobotics’ employees collectively boast many decades of military and civilian experience 

in aviation, communications, and logistics in the most demanding environments.

The name and address of the applicant is:

Plyobotics Unmanned Systems Solutions

Attn: Blair Bigcas

Email:blair@plyobotics.com

Telephone: (858) 610-6899

2400 6th Avenue, Unit 802

San Diego, CA 92101
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Regulations from which the exemption is requested:

14 C.F.R. Part 21

14 C.F.R. 45.23 (b)

14 C.F.R. 91.7 (a)

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

14 C.F.R. 91.103

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. 91.405 (a)

14 C.F.R. 407 (a) (1)

14 C.F.R. 409 (a) (2)

14 C.F.R. 417 (a) & (b)

This exemption application is expressly submitted to fulfill Congress' goal in passing

Section 333(a) through (c) of the Reform Act. This law directs the Secretary of Transportation

to consider whether certain unmanned aircraft systems may operate safely in the national

airspace system (NAS) before completion of the rulemaking required under Section 332 of

the Reform Act. In making this determination, the Secretary is required to determine which

types of UAV do not create a hazard to users of the NAS or the public or pose a threat to

national security in light of the following:

• The small UAV size, weight, speed, and operational capability;

• Operation of the small UAV in close proximity to airports and populated areas; and

• Operation of the small UAV within visual line of sight of the operator

Reform Act§ 333(a). Lastly, if the Secretary determines that such vehicles "may operate

safely in the national airspace system, the Secretary shall establish requirements for the safe

operation of such aircraft in the national airspace system." Applicant interprets this provision

to place the duty on the Administrator to not only process applications for exemptions under

section 333, but for the Administrator to craft conditions for the safe operation of the UAS, if it

should be determined that the conditions set forth herein do not fulfill the statutory

requirements for approval. The Federal Aviation Act expressly grants the FAA the authority

to issue exemptions. This statutory authority by its terms includes exempting civil aircraft, as

the term is defined under §401 01 of the Act that includes UAV, from the requirement that all

civil aircraft must have a current airworthiness certificate.

The Administrator may grant an exemption from a requirement of a regulation prescribed

under subsection (a) or (b) of this section or any sections 44702-44716 of this title if the

Administrator finds the exemption in the public interest. 49 U.S.C. §44701(f) See also 49

USC §44711(a); 49 USC §44704; 14 CFR §91.203(a) (1).

Plyobotics’ UAV’s consist of manufacturer built 4 engine multirotor craft, weighing 55 or

fewer lbs. including payload. They operate, under normal conditions, at a speed of no more

than 50 knots and have the capability to hover, and move in the vertical and horizontal

plane simultaneously. They will operate only in line of sight and will operate only within a

small controlled area described in the Confidential Operations Procedures, attached as

Exhibit A (hereinafter "Procedures") Such operations will insure that the UAV will "not create

a hazard to users of the national airspace system or the public.''

Applicant submits this Procedure as a Confidential and Proprietary document under 14 CFR

11 .35 (b) as the entire Procedures contains proprietary information that the applicant has

not and will not share with others. The Procedures contains operating conditions and

procedures that are not available to the public and are protected from release under the

Freedom of Information Act 5 USC 552 et.seq. Given the small size of the UAV’s involved

and the restricted controlled environment within which they will operate, the applicant falls
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squarely within that zone of safety (an equivalent level of safety) in which Congress

envisioned that the FAA must, by exemption, allow commercial operations of UAV’s to

commence immediately. Also due to the size of the UAV’s and the controlled areas in which

the relevant UAV’s will operate, approval of the application presents no national security

issue. Given the following, the grant of the requested exemptions is clearly in the public

interest:

 Clear direction in Section 333 of the Reform Act, the authority contained in the

Federal Aviation Act, as amended.

 The level of safety surrounding the proposed operations that implement the use of

HD and thermal imagining, and the significant public benefit.

 Innovative reductions in physical dangers of personnel climbing towers (e.g., thermal

imaging of active wasp/hornet nests, electrical “hot spots”...) and/or the use of highrise heavy equipment thus reduced emissions associated with allowing UAV’s

operations.

Accordingly, the applicant respectfully requests that the FAA grant the requested exemption

without delay.

AIRCRAFT AND EQUIVALENT LEVEL OF SAFETY

The applicant proposes that the exemption requested herein apply to civil aircraft that have

the characteristics and that operate with the limitations listed herein. These limitations

provide for an exceptional level of safety to operations. These limitations and conditions to

which Plyobotics Unmanned Systems Solutions agrees to be bound when conducting

commercial operations under an FAA issued exemption include:

1. The UAV will weigh less than 55 lbs.

2. Flights will be operated within line of sight of operator.

3. Maximum total flight time for each operational flight will be 30 minutes. Flights will be

terminated at 15% battery power reserve should that occur prior to the 30 minute limit.

4. Flights will be operated at an altitude of no more than 400 feet AGL.

5. UAV operator will be trained and certified in the proper safety and operations of the

UAV.

6. The UAV will only operate within a controlled area as defined in the Procedures.

7. The operator will post advisor notice around the controlled area.

8. Operator will have been trained in operation of UAV generally and received up-to-date

information on the particular UAV to be operated as required.

9. If the UAV loses communications or loses its GPS signal, the UAS will have

capability to return to a pre-determined location within the Security Perimeter and land.

10. The UAV will have the capability to abort a flight in case of unpredicted obstacles or

emergencies.

14 C.F.R. Part 21, Subpart H: Airworthiness Certificates 14 C.F.R. §91.203 (a) (1)

Subpart H, entitled Airworthiness Certificates, establishes the procedural requirements for

the issuance of airworthiness certificates as required by FAR §91.203 (a) (1).

Given the size and limited operating area associated with the aircraft to be utilized by the

Applicant, an exemption from Part 21 Subpart H meets the requirements of an equivalent

level of safety under Part 11 and Section 333 of the Reform Act. The Federal Aviation Act

(49 U.S.C.§44701 (f)) and Section 333 of the Reform Act both authorize the FAA to exempt

aircraft from the requirement for an airworthiness certificate, upon consideration of the size,

weight, speed, operational capability, and proximity to airports and populated areas of the

particular UAV. In all cases, an analysis of these criteria demonstrates that the UAV

operated without an airworthiness certificate, in the restricted environment and under the

conditions proposed will be at least as safe, or safer, than a conventional aircraft (fixed wing
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or rotorcraft) operating with an airworthiness certificate without the restrictions and conditions

proposed.

The UAV’s to be operated hereunder is less than 55 lbs. fully loaded, carries neither a pilot

nor passenger, carries no explosive materials or flammable liquid fuels, and operates

exclusively within a controlled area as set out in the Procedures. Unlike other civil aircraft,

operations under this exemption will be tightly controlled and monitored by the operator,

pursuant to the Procedures requirements. Lastly, application of these same criteria

demonstrates that there is no credible threat to national security posed by the UAV, due to

its size, speed of operation, location of operation, lack of explosive materials or flammable

liquid fuels, and inability to carry a substantial external load.

14 C.F.R. §91.7(a): Civil aircraft airworthiness.

The regulation requires that no person may operate a civil aircraft unless it is in airworthy

condition. As there will be no airworthiness certificate issued for the aircraft, should this

exemption be granted, no FAA regulatory standard will exist for determining airworthiness.

Given the size of the aircraft and the requirements contained in the Procedures for

maintenance and use of safety checklists prior to each flight, an equivalent level of safety will

be provided.

14 C.F.R. § 91.9 (b) (2): Civil Aircraft Flight Manual in the Aircraft.

Section 91.9(b) (2) provides:

No person may operate a U.S.-registered civil aircraft...

(2) For which an Airplane or Rotorcraft Flight Manual is not required by §21.5 of this chapter,

unless there is available in the aircraft a current approved airplane or Rotorcraft Flight

Manual, approved manual material, markings, and placards, or any combination thereof.

The UAV, given its size and configuration has no ability or place to carry such a flight manual

on the aircraft, not only because there is no pilot on board, but because there is no room or

capacity to carry such an item on the aircraft.

The equivalent level of safety will be maintained by keeping the flight manual at the ground

control point where the operator flying the UAV will have immediate access to it. The

FAA has issued the following exemptions to this regulation: Exemption Nos. 8607, 8737,

8738, 9299, 9299A, 9565, 95658, 10167, 10167A, 10602, 32827, and 10700.

14 C.F.R. § 91.103: Preflight action

This regulation requires each operator to take certain actions before flight to insure the safety

of flight. As FAA approved rotorcraft flight manuals will not be provided for the aircraft an

exemption will be needed. An equivalent level of safety will be provided as set forth in

Procedures. The operator will take all actions including reviewing weather, flight battery

requirements, landing and takeoff distances and aircraft performance data before initiation of

flight.

14 C.F.R. §91.109: Flight instruction:

Section 91.103 provides that no person may operate a civil aircraft (except a manned free

balloon) that is being used for flight instruction unless that aircraft has fully functioning dual

controls.
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UAV’s and remotely piloted aircraft, by their design do not have fully functional dual controls.

Flight control is accomplished through the use of a control box that communicates with the

aircraft via radio communications. The FAA has approved exemptions for flight training

without fully functional dual controls for a number of aircraft and for flight instruction in

experimental aircraft. See Exemption Nos.5778K & 9862A. The equivalent level of safety is 

provided by the fact that neither a pilot nor passengers will be carried in the aircraft and by

the size and speed of the aircraft.

14 C.F.R. §91.119: Minimum safe altitudes

Section 91.119 establishes safe altitudes for operation of civil aircraft. Section 91.119 (d)

allows helicopters to be operated at less than the minimums prescribed, provided the person

operating the helicopter complies with any route or altitudes prescribed for helicopters by the

FAA.

As this exemption is for a UAV that is a helicopter and the exemption requests authority to

operate at altitudes up to 400 AGL, an exemption may be needed to allow such operations.

As set forth herein, except for the limited conditions stated in the Procedures, the UAV will

never operate at higher than 400 AGL.

The equivalent level of safety will be achieved given the size, weight, and speed of the UAV

as well as the location where it is operated. In addition, the low-altitude operations of the

UAV will ensure separation between these small-UAS operations and the operations of

conventional aircraft that must comply with Section 91.119.

14 C.F.R. §91.121 Altimeter Settings

This regulation requires each person operating an aircraft to maintain cruising altitude by

reference to an altimeter that is set " ... to the elevation of the departure airport or an

appropriate altimeter setting available before departure." As the UAV may not have a

barometric altimeter, but instead a GPS altitude read out, an exemption may be needed. An

equivalent level of safety will be achieved by the operator, pursuant to the Procedures and

Safety Check list, confirming the altitude of the launch site shown on the GPS altitude

indicator before flight.

14 C.F.R. § 91.151(a): Fuel Requirements for Flight in VFR Conditions

Section 91 .151 (a) prohibits an individual from beginning "a flight in an airplane under VFR

conditions unless (considering wind and forecast weather conditions) there is enough fuel to

fly to the first point of intended landing, and, assuming normal cruising speed - (1) During the

day, to fly after that for at least 30 minutes; or (2) At night, to fly after that for at least 45

minutes."

The battery powering the UAV provides approximately 40 minutes of powered flight. To meet

the 30-minute reserve requirement in 14 CFR §91 .151, UAV flights would be limited to

approximately 10 minutes in length. Given the limitations on the UAV's proposed flight area

and the location of its proposed operations within a predetermined area, a longer time frame

for flight in daylight or night VFR conditions is reasonable.

Applicant believes that an exemption from 14 CFR §91 .151 (a) falls within the scope of prior

exemptions. See Exemption 10673 (allowing Lockheed Martin Corporation to operate without

compliance with FAR 91.151 (a)). Operating the small UAS, in a tightly controlled area, with

less than 30 minutes of reserve fuel, does not engender the type of risks that Section 91

.151(a) was intended to alleviate given the size and speed of the small UAS. Additionally,

limiting UAV flights to 10 minutes would greatly reduce the utility for which the exemption will
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be granted.

Applicant believes that an equivalent level of safety can be achieved by limiting flights to 30

minutes or 15% of battery power whichever happens first. This restriction would be more

than adequate to return the UAV to its planned landing zone from anywhere in its limited

operating area.

Similar exemptions have been granted to other operations, including Exemptions 2689F,

5745, 10673, 10808, and 12120.

14 C.F.R. §91.203 (a) and (b): Carrying Civil Aircraft Certification and Registration

The regulation provides in pertinent part:

(a) Except as provided in § 91.715, no person may operate a civil aircraft unless it has within

it the following:

(1) An appropriate and current airworthiness certificate.

(b) No person may operate a civil aircraft unless the airworthiness certificate required by

paragraph (a) of this section or a special flight authorization issued under §91.715 is

displayed at the cabin or cockpit entrance so that it is legible to passengers or crew.

The UAV fully loaded weighs no more than 55 lbs. and is operated without an on board pilot.

As such, there is no ability or place to carry certification and registration documents or to

display them on the UAV.

An equivalent level of safety will be achieved by keeping these documents at the ground

control point where the operator flying the UAV will have immediate access to them, to the

extent they are applicable to the UAV. The FAA has issued numerous exemptions to this

regulation. A representative sample of other exceptions includes Exemption Nos. 9565,

9665, 9789, 9789A, 9797, 9797A, 9816A, and 10700.

14 C.F.R. §91.405 (a); 407 (a) (1); 409 (a) (2); 417(a) & (b): Maintenance Inspections

These regulations require that an aircraft operator or owner "shall have that aircraft

inspected as prescribed in subpart E of this part and shall between required inspections,

except as provided in paragraph (c) of this section, have discrepancies repaired as

prescribed in part 43 of this chapter." and others shall inspect or maintain the aircraft in

compliance with Part 43.

Given that these section and Part 43 apply only to aircraft with an airworthiness certificate,

these sections will not apply to the applicant. The operator will accomplish maintenance

pursuant to the flight manual and operating handbook as referenced in the Procedures. An

equivalent level of safety will be achieved because these UAV’s are very limited in size and

will carry a small payload and operate only in controlled areas for limited periods of time. If

mechanical issues arise the UAV can land immediately and will be operating from no

higher than 400 feet AGL. As provided in the Procedures, the operator will ensure that the

UAV is in working order prior to initiating flight, perform required maintenance, and keep a

log of any maintenance performed.

Moreover, the operator is the person most familiar with the aircraft and best suited to maintain

the aircraft in an airworthy condition to provide the equivalent level of safety.

Pursuant to 14 C.F.R. Part 11, the following summary is provided for publication in the

Federal Register, should it be determined that publication is needed:

Applicant seeks an exemption from the following rules:
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14 C.F.R. §21, subpart H; 14 C.F.R 45.23(b); 14 C.F.R. §§ 61.113(a) & (b); 91.7(a); 91.9(b)

(2);

91.103(b); 91.109; 91.119; 91.121; 91.151(a); 91.203(a) and (b); 91.405 (a); 91.407 (a)

(1);

91.409 (a) (2); 91.409 (a) (2) and 91.417 (a) & (b) to operate commercially a small

unmanned vehicle (551bs or less) for the purpose of inspection, monitoring, mapping and

photographing attached equipment and engineering studies involving communication tower

operations.

Approval of exemptions allowing commercial operations of UAV’s will create a level of safety

by reducing risk. Conventional tower structure inspections and associated tasks involve

extreme risks to personnel physically climbing such structures and/or utilizing high rise

equipment both of which create numerous and extreme risk to such personnel. In contrast, a

UAV weighing fewer than 55 lbs. and powered by batteries eliminates virtually all of that risk.

The UAV will carry no passengers or crew and, therefore, will not expose personnel to any

of the risks described above.

The operation of small UAV’s, weighing less than 55 lbs., conducted in the strict conditions

outlined above, will provide a level of safety supporting the grant of the exemptions

requested herein, including exempting the applicant from the requirements of Part 21 and

allowing commercial operations. These lightweight aircraft operate at slow speeds, close to

the ground, and in a controlled environment.

Privacy

All flights will occur over private or controlled access property with the property owner's prior

consent and knowledge. The granting of this exemption request will provide innovative safety

operations.

Satisfaction of the criteria provided in Section 333 of the Reform Act of 2012-- size, weight,

speed, operating capabilities, proximity to airports and populated areas and operation within

visual line of sight and national security - provide more than adequate justification for the

grant of the requested exemptions allowing commercial operation of applicant's UAV in and

pursuant to the Procedures appended hereto.

Respectfully,

Blair Bigcas, Chief Executive Officer

Plyobotics Unmanned Systems Solutions