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Jan 12,2015

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, Texas UAV Professionals, developer and 

operator of Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (“sUASs”) equipped to conduct 

inspections for the utility and construction industries, 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.

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The name and address of the applicant is:

Texas UAV Professionals

Attn: Curtis Youngblood

PH: 979-828-4269

Email: cy@curtisyoungblood.com

Address: 11253 E OSR Hearne, TX 77859

The applicant requests relief from the following regulations:

Part 21, Certification Procedures for Products and Parts, prescribes, in pertinent 

part, the procedural requirements for issuing and changing design approvals, 

production approvals, airworthiness certificates, and airworthiness approvals.

Section 45.23(b) prescribes, in pertinent part, that when marks include only the

Roman capital letter “N” and the registration number is displayed on limited, 

restricted, or light-sport category aircraft or experimental or provisionally certificated

aircraft, the operator must also display on that aircraft near each entrance to the

cabin, cockpit, or pilot station, in letters not less than 2 inches nor more than 6 

inches high, the words “limited,” “restricted,” “light-sport,” “experimental,” or

“provisional,” as applicable.
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Section 61.113(a) and (b) prescribe that -

(a) No person who holds a private pilot certificate may act as a pilot in command 

(PIC) of an aircraft that is carrying passengers or property for compensation 

or hire; nor may that person, for compensation or hire, act as PIC of an 

aircraft.

(b) A private pilot may, for compensation or hire, act as PIC 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.

Section 91.7(a) prescribes that no person may operate a civil aircraft unless it is in an 

airworthy condition.

Section 91.9(b)(2) prescribes, in pertinent part, that no person may operate

U.S.-registered civil aircraft 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.

Section 91.103 prescribes that each PIC shall, before beginning a flight, become 

familiar with all available information concerning that flight. This information must 

include -

(b) For any flight, runway lengths at airports of intended use, and the following 

takeoff and landing distance information:

(1) For civil aircraft for which an approved Airplane or Rotorcraft

Flight Manual containing takeoff and landing distance data is required, the 

takeoff and landing distance data contained therein; and

(2) For civil aircraft other than those specified in paragraph (b)(1) of this 

section, other reliable information appropriate to the aircraft, relating to 

aircraft performance under expected values of airport elevation and 

runway slope, aircraft gross weight, and wind and temperature.

Section 91.109 prescribes, in pertinent part, 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.

Section 91.119 prescribes that, except when necessary for takeoff or landing, no 

person may operate an aircraft below the following altitudes:

(a) Anywhere. An altitude allowing, if a power unit fails, an emergency landing 

without undue hazard to persons or property on the surface.

(b) Over congested areas. Over any congested area of a city, town, or settlement, 

or over any open-air assembly of persons, an altitude of 1,000 feet above the 

highest obstacle within a horizontal radius of 2,000 feet of the aircraft.

(c) Over other than congested areas. An altitude of 500 feet above the

surface, except over open water or sparsely populated areas. In those

cases, the aircraft may not be operated closer than 500 feet to any

person, vessel, vehicle, or structure.

(d) Helicopters, powered parachutes, and weight-shift-control aircraft. If the 

operation is conducted without hazard to persons or property on the surface -
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(1) A helicopter may be operated at less than the minimums prescribed in 

paragraph (b) or paragraph (c) of this section, provided each person 

operating the helicopter complies with any routes or altitudes specifically 

prescribed for helicopters by the FAA; and

(2) A powered parachute or weight-shift-control aircraft may be operated

at less than the minimums prescribed in paragraph (c) of this section.

Section 91.121 prescribes, in pertinent part, 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.”

Section 91.151(a) prescribes that no person may begin a flight in an airplane under 

visual flight rules (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.

Section 91.203(a) prescribes, in pertinent part, that no person may operate a civil 

aircraft unless it has within it -

(1) An appropriate and current airworthiness certificate; and

(2) An effective U.S. registration certificate issued to its owner or, for operation 

within the United States, the second copy of the Aircraft Registration 

Application as provided for in § 47.31(c).

Section 91.203(b) prescribes, in pertinent part, that no person may operate a

civil aircraft unless the airworthiness certificate 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.

Section 91.405(a) prescribes, in pertinent part, that each owner of 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, Maintenance, 

Preventive Maintenance, Rebuilding, and Alteration.

Section 91.407(a)(1) prescribes that no person may operate any aircraft that has 

undergone maintenance, preventive maintenance, rebuilding, or alteration unless it 

has been approved for return to service by a person authorized under § 43.7 of this 

chapter.

Section 91.409(a)(2) prescribes, in pertinent part, that no person may operate an 

aircraft unless, within the preceding 12 calendar months, it has had an inspection 

for the issuance of an airworthiness certificate in accordance with part 21.

Section 91.417(a) and (b) prescribe, in pertinent part, that -

(a) Each registered owner or operator shall keep the following records for

the periods specified in paragraph (b) of this section:

(1) Records of the maintenance, preventive maintenance, and alteration 

and records of the 100-hour, annual, progressive, and other required or 

approved inspections, as appropriate, for each aircraft (including the 

airframe) and each engine, propeller, rotor, and appliance of an

aircraft. The records must include -
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(i) A description (or reference to data acceptable to the Administrator) of 

the work performed; and

(ii) The date of completion of the work performed; and

(iii) The signature and certificate number of the person approving

the aircraft for return to service.

(2) Records containing the following information:

(i) The total time in service of the airframe, each engine, each 

propeller, and each rotor.

(ii) The current status of life-limited parts of each airframe, engine, 

propeller, rotor, and appliance.

(iii) The time since last overhaul of all items installed on the aircraft that 

are required to be overhauled on a specified time basis.

(iv) The current inspection status of the aircraft, including the time

since the last inspection required by the inspection program under

which the aircraft and its appliances are maintained.

(v) The current status of applicable airworthiness directives (AD) and 

safety directives including, for each, the method of compliance, 

the AD or safety directive number and revision date. If the AD or

safety directive involves recurring action, the time and date when the 

next action is required.

(vi) Copies of the forms prescribed by § 43.9(d) for each major

alteration to the airframe and currently installed engines, rotors, 

propellers, and appliances.

(b) The owner or operator shall retain the following records for

the periods prescribed:

(1) The records specified in paragraph (a)(1) of this section shall be

retained until the work is repeated or superseded by other work or for

1 year after the work is performed.

(2) The records specified in paragraph (a)(2) of this section shall be

retained and transferred with the aircraft at the time the aircraft is 

sold.

(3) A list of defects furnished to a registered owner or operator under § 

43.11 shall be retained until the defects are repaired and the aircraft is 

approved for return to service.

Texas UAV Professionals (TUP) supports its request with the following

information:

The TUP’s information is organized into four sections: (1) the Unmanned Aircraft System 

(UAS), (2) the UAS pilot in command (PIC), (3) the UAS Operating Parameters, and (4) the

Public Interest.

The petitioner provides a supplemental proprietary Texas UAV Professionals (TUP) UAS 

Flight Manual (the Manual) in support of its exemption request.
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Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS)

TUP’s UAS are multirotor aircraft with final assembly by Texas UAV Professionals, LLC, a

Texas-based company. TUP’s UAS are under 55lbs and fly under 65 knots. All operations 

will be below 400 feet AGL. The UAS will only be flown within 1 mile and Visual Line of Sight

(VLOS) of the PIC. All transmissions will be on FCC approved frequencies such as 2.4ghz, 

5.8ghz, etc. TUP UAS will only be flown over property that TUP has been given explicit 

permission to have safe access to.

The UAS carry no explosive materials or flammable liquid fuels. They operate without any 

pilots or passengers on board. The crew is on the ground within VLOS at all times for air 

traffic avoidance. The UAS, in the event of control signal loss has the ability to return to a 

pre-determined location within a safe landing area, as detailed in the Manual, and land. 

The UAS has the ability to abort a mission in case of emergency. It can land immediately or 

return to land automatically or under PIC manual control depending on the type of 

emergency. In the case of emergency incapacitation of the PIC the UAS can return and land 

safely on its own.

These operations would otherwise be performed by a full size aircraft, likely a helicopter, 

weighing at least 2000lbs carrying a pilot, crew and 100 gallons of fuel. When flown in the 

same area and in the same conditions the UAS poses a much smaller risk to the national 

airspace, property and persons in the area. Additionally the UAS has a much lower noise 

profile than full size operations. TUP requests exemption from § 45.23(b) as there is no

entrance to the cabin, cockpit, or pilot station on which the word “Experimental” can be

placed. The petitioner states that given the size of the UA, 2-inch lettering would be

impossible. The petitioner asserts that an equivalent level of safety will be provided by

having the word “Experimental” marked on the fuselage in accordance with § 45.29(f), 

enabling the pilots and others working with the UAs to see and observe the aircraft’s

“Experimental” markings.

TUP believes the maintenance requirements in §§ 91.405(a), 91.407(a)(1), 91.409(a)(2), 

91.417(a) and (b) apply only to aircraft with an airworthiness certificate and are therefore not 

applicable to our UAS operations. In place of these requirements TUP will perform regular 

maintenance based on logged data as outlined in the manual. TUPs regular maintenance 

schedule in addition to the aircrafts limited size, payload and operational constraints will 

provide an equivalent level of safety in the maintenance and operation of TUP UAS.

UAS Pilot In Command (PIC)

The UAS is remotely controlled and operates within a limited airspace. The limited weight 

and speed in addition to not carrying a pilot or passenger’s significantly reduces the level of 

risk of flight operations compared to full size operations. We propose the PIC require a 

standard Private Pilot License and Class 3 medical. We propose the additional requirement 

of a commercial pilot’s license would provide no additional safety to the flight operations of 

the UAS. In addition to the Private Pilot’s License having the pilots complete a UAS training 

service as listed in the Manual is proposed. This would give the PIC the needed familiarity 

with the aircraft they will use in flight. 
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UAS Operating Parameters

All operations will be conducted in accordance with the Manual and any local safety 

requirements. All standard flight operations will be conducted within 1 mile and visual line of 

sight of the PIC, in Class G airspace below 400 Feet AGL at least 5 miles from an airport. If 

there are any operations that might include flight within 5 miles of an airport TUP will notify 

the local Flight Standards District Office (FSDO) and airport controller (ATC). TUP will follow 

additional safety related instructions from the FSDO and Tower for operations within 5 miles 

of the airport. TUP will give a daily briefing, as noted in the Manual, with mandatory 

attendance by anyone potentially involved in the flight safety area. 

The UAS in most cases can gain access to the property for inspection without overflying 

other property or persons, unlike a full size aircraft which often must overfly unrelated 

property and persons to gain access for inspection. The lack of exposure to unrelated 

property and persons improves the safety relative to full size aircraft.

TUP UAS missions are all flown within VLOS with crew available on the ground to assist in 

keeping persons and property at safe distances throughout a mission. Being on the ground 

enables the crew to actively control the inspection area and warn other persons immediately 

if an emergency exists. Full-size operations often do not have crew on the ground to actively 

control the inspection area or warn persons in the case of an emergency.

TUP asserts the use of UAS during inspections will offer a significant safety increase to 

operators, personnel, property and the public because of the UAS ability to obtain inspection 

data using a low weight aircraft staying in Class G airspace below 400 feet AGL over a 

controlled inspection area with limited to no exposure to anything outside the specified

inspection area. Because of these factors, the petitioner asserts that UAS operations will 

result in a significant safety increase for personnel and the general public compared to the

use of current inspection methods such as helicopters, and small aircraft.

TUP requests exemption from§ 91.7(a) because our UAS do not have airworthiness 

certificates. Consequently, there is not applicable regulatory standard available to determine 

airworthiness. The equivalent level of safety will be provided through adherence to the 

maintenance and safety checklist usage standards proscribed in the Manual.

TUP asserts that given the size and configuration and unmanned nature of the UA, it is not 

possible to carry a flight manual on board the aircraft. Additionally, because of the same 

limiting factors, there is no ability to carry certification and registration documents, or display 

them on the UA. Therefore we request an exemption from§§ 91.9(b)(2) and 91.203(a) and

(b). An equivalent level of safety will be provided by storing the flight manual and applicable 

certification and registration documents at the ground control point where the UAS pilot will 

have immediate access to them.

TUP requests exemption from§ 91.103 because preflight actions for UAS vary from those 

outlined by the regulation. The Manual requires the pilot to take preflight actions prescribed

by the preflight checklists. Checklists include analysis of weather conditions, checking flight 

battery requirements and assessment of takeoff and landing distances. TUP asserts that 

these actions will provide an equivalent level of safety.
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TUP requests exemption from the requirement to have fully functional dual controls in 

aircraft used for flight instruction, prescribed by § 91.109. UAS, by design, do not have fully 

functional dual controls and are controlled instead through the use of a control box that uses 

radio communications for aircraft control. The equivalent level of safety is provided because 

the aircraft are unmanned, can be controlled remotely, are relatively small, and operate at 

slower speeds than the aircraft envisioned by the regulation.

TUP requests exemption from § 91.119 which outlines minimum safe altitudes for aircraft.

The UAS operated by TUP operates much as a helicopter in flight with vertical takeoff and 

landing capabilities. The UAS has the ability to hover in one location and maneuver in any 

direction and speed as needed for safety without loss of control or lift. Purely vertical 

operations, straight up and straight down, are fully within the capability of these UAS even in 

windy conditions. The UAS operations will be limited to areas where TUP has been given 

prior authority to operate from land owners, local government or property managing 

authority. Inspection areas will be cleared and monitored by TUP on the ground where crew 

members can give persons immediate information and direction about the mission as it is 

occurring. The UAS can maintain all flight operations entirely inside the inspection areas 

unlike full size aircraft which require significant overfly of areas unrelated to the inspections

simply to get to and from the base of operations. Additionally, UAS operations within city 

limits will be limited to 20 knots GS. The small size, weight, speed and low altitude 

operations of UASs mean that vehicles and basic structures provide significant protection for 

persons from UASs in the case of an emergency. The lower risk to persons and immediately 

available ground crew means in most emergencies the UAS can land in the immediate area, 

unlike full size operations, removing any further risk to the national airspace. The totality of 

these factors results in a more controlled and limited exposure to the national airspace than 

is possible with full size aircraft inspections. The ability to operate below 400 feet AGL for 

inspections will ensure the separation with conventional aircraft complying with § 91.119. In 

addition to less exposure to the national airspace the requirement, as listed in the Manual, to 

stay 500 feet away from any persons in the open maintains a safe separation between the 

UAS and persons. Full size aircraft performing the same inspections will often have to 

overfly persons in congested areas. TUP believes an equivalent level of safety will be 

achieved because of the limited size, low weight, low speed, operational separation, 

operational location and totality of control of inspection area of the UAS compared to flight 

operations with larger aircraft and/or rotor craft.

TUP requests exemption from the requirements of § 91.121, our UAS may have GPS 

altitude read-outs instead of barometric altimeters. The altitude readout will be verified 

relative to the launch site altitude by the PIC prior to flight. All operations will be AGL relative 

to the ground level calibrated at takeoff. These procedures will result in an equivalent level 

of safety.

TUP requests exemption from the requirements of § 91.151(a). Our UAS are battery 

powered and are limited to approximately 35 minutes of powered flight. A 30 minute fuel 

reserve would affectively limit operations to 5 minutes of flight time, negatively impacting 

efficiency and utility. Additionally with the limited area of operation, size and speed of the UA 

the level of risk does not rise to the level that the regulation is intended to mitigate. An 

equivalent level of safety can be achieved by requiring at least 20% of battery power 

remaining (as determined by the onboard monitoring system and the PIC) when the UA 

lands at a safe landing area.
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Public Interest

TUP believes that given the small size and low speed of the UA involved, limited airspace, 

totality of control of inspection area and removal of unrelated overfly areas, this proposed 

operation falls directly in the zone of “equivalent level of safety” in which Congress 

envisioned that the FAA must, by exemption, allow commercial operations of UAS to 

commence immediately. Also because of the size of the UA and the limited area of 

operations of the UAS, approval of the application presents no national security issue. Given 

the clear direction in Public Law112–95 § 333 the strong equivalent level of safety 

surrounding the proposed operations, and the significant public benefit, including enhanced 

safety, reduced noise, reduction in costs through more efficient inspection operations, 

granting the requested exemptions is in the public interest.