October 4, 2015

U.S. Department of Transportation, Docket Operations

West Building Ground Floor, Room W12­140

1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE

Washington, DC 20590

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

from 14 CFR Part 21; 14 C.F.R. 45.23(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, I, Daniel James Walsh, operator of an unmanned aircraft system (“UAS”) equipped to conduct aerial

photography for the motion picture, television, university and Real Estate industries for scripted, closed­set

filming, hereby apply for an exemption from the listed Federal Aviation Regulations (“FARs”) to allow

commercial operation of said UAS, 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, my requested exemption would permit the operation of a UAS under

controlled conditions in airspace that is 1) limited 2) predetermined and 3) has controlled, monitored access.

Approval of this exemption would thereby enhance safety 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.

The name and address of the applicant is:

Daniel James Walsh

135 Market Street

Lewisburg, PA 17837

310­493­0435

djwalsh@area149.com
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)

Given the small size of my UAS (DJI Phantom 3 Pro) and the limited, pre­authorized airspace in which it will

operate, I fall squarely within the zone of safety in which Congress envisioned that the FAA will, by

exemption, allow commercial operations of UASs. Also, due to the small size of my UAS and the restricted

areas in which it will operate, approval of the application presents no national security issue. Given the clear

direction in Section 333 of the Reform Act, the authority contained in the Federal Aviation Act, as amended;

the strong equivalent level of safety surrounding the proposed operations, and the significant public benefit,

including enhanced safety, reduction in environmental impacts, including reduced emissions associated with

allowing UASs for movie, television, university and Real Estate operations, the grant of the requested

exemptions is in the public interest. 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 at least an

equivalent or even higher level of safety to operations under the current regulatory structure because the

proposed operations represent a safety enhancement to the already safe movie and television filming

operations conducted with conventional aircraft.

These limitations and conditions to which Daniel James Walsh agrees to be bound when conducting

commercial operations under an FAA issued exemption include:

1. The UAS weighs less than 55 lbs.

2. Flights will be operated within line of sight of the pilot, Daniel James Walsh.

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

at 25% 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 or, not more than 200 feet above

an elevated platform from which filming is planned.

5. Minimum crew for each operation will consist of the UAS Pilot (Daniel James Walsh), the Visual

Observer, and the Camera Operator.

6. A secure perimeter will be established for the flight operations area.
7. A briefing will be conducted regarding the planned UAS operations prior to each day’s production

activities. It will be mandatory that all personnel who will be performing duties within the boundaries of

the safety perimeter be present for this briefing.

8. The operator will obtain the consent of all persons involved in the filming and ensure that only

consenting persons will be allowed within 100 feet of the flight operation.

9.The pilot (Daniel James Walsh) and observer will have been trained in operation of UAS and received

up­to­date information on the particular UAS to be operated as required.

10. Observer and pilot will, at all times, be able to communicate by voice and/or text.

11. Written and/or oral permission from the relevant property holders will be obtained.

12. All required permissions and permits will be obtained from territorial, state, county or city jurisdictions,

including local law enforcement, fire, or other appropriate governmental agencies.

13. If the UAS loses communications or loses its GPS signal, the UAS will have capability to return to a

predetermined location within the security perimeter and land.

14. The UAS will have the capability to abort a flight in case of unpredicted obstacles, inclement weather

or other 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 Daniel James Walsh, 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 UAS. In all

cases, an analysis of these criteria demonstrates that the UAS 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 or rotorcraft) operating with an airworthiness certificate without the

restrictions and conditions proposed.

The UAS to be operated (DJI Phantom 3 Pro) 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 secured, predetermined, authorized area. Unlike other civil aircraft, operations under this exemption will be

tightly controlled and monitored by both the operator and under the requirements and in compliance with

local public safety requirements, to provide security for the area of operation as is now done with

conventional filming. The FAA will have advance notice of all operations. These safety enhancements, which

already apply to civil aircraft operated in connection with motion picture, television, university and Real

Estate video production, provide a greater degree of safety to the public and property owners than

conventional operations conducted with airworthiness certificates issued under 14 C.F.R. Part 21, Subpart

H. Lastly, application of these same criteria demonstrates that there is no credible threat to national security

posed by the UAS, 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. § 45.23 (b)

Marking of the Aircraft:

The regulation requires: When marks include only the Roman capital letter "N" and the registration number

is displayed on limited, restricted or light­sport 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,"

"light­sport," "experimental," or "provisional," as applicable.

Even though the UAS will have no airworthiness certificate, an exemption may be needed as the UAS will

have no entrance to the cabin, cockpit or pilot station on which the word “Experimental” can be placed.

Given the size of the DJI Phantom 3 Pro (UAS), two­inch lettering will be impossible. The word

“Experimental” will be placed on the fuselage in compliance with §45.29 (f).

The equivalent level of safety will be provided by having the UAS marked on its fuselage as required by

§45.29 (f) where the pilot, observer and others working with the UAS will see the identification of the UAS as

“Experimental.” The FAA has issued the following exemptions to this regulation to Exemptions Nos. 10700,

8738, 10167 and 10167A.

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 for maintenance and the 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, 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 UAS, 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 pilot flying the UAS will have immediate access to it. The FAA has issued the

following exemptions to this regulation: Exemption Nos. 8607, 8737, 8738, 9299, 9299A, 9565, 9565B,

10167, 10167A, 10602, 32827, and 10700.

14 C.F.R. § 91.103: Preflight action

This regulation requires each pilot in command 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. The pilot 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.

UASs 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 will be 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 UAS that is a

helicopter and the exemption requests authority to operate at altitudes up to 400 AGL, or not more than 200

above an elevated platform from which filming is planned, an exemption may be needed to allow such

operations. As set forth herein, except for the limited conditions already stated, the UAS will never operate at

higher than 400 AGL. It will be operated in a restricted area within a security perimeter, where buildings and

people will not be exposed to operations without their pre­obtained consent.

The equivalent level of safety will be achieved given the size, weight, speed of the UAS as well as the

location where it is operated. No flight will be taken without the permission of the property owner or local

officials. Because of the advance notice to the property owner and participants in the filming activity, all

affected individuals will be aware of the planned flight operations.

Compared to flight operations with aircraft or rotorcraft weighing far more than the maximum 55lbs.

proposed herein and the lack of flammable fuel, any risk associated with these operations is far less than

those presently presented with conventional aircraft operating at or below 500 AGL in the movie, television,

university and Real Estate industries.

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 UAS may not have a barometric altimeter, but instead a GPS altitude read­out, an

exemption may be needed. An equivalent level of safety will be achieved by the operator (Daniel James

Walsh), 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

The battery powering the UAS provides approximately 40 minutes of powered flight. To meet the 30 minute

reserve requirement in 14 CFR §91.151, UAS flights would be limited to approximately 10 minutes in length.

Given the limitations on the UAS’s proposed flight area and the location of its proposed operations within a

predetermined area, a slightly longer time­frame for flight in daylight or night VFR conditions is reasonable.
I, Daniel James Walsh, believe that an equivalent level of safety can be achieved by limiting flights to 30

minutes or 25% of battery power, whichever happens first. This restriction would be more than adequate to

return the UAS 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, and 10808.

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 UAS (DJI Phantom 3 Pro) fully loaded weighs no more than 55 lbs and is operated without an onboard

pilot. As such, there is no ability or place to carry certification and registration documents or to display them

on the UAS.

An equivalent level of safety will be achieved by keeping these documents (certification, registration,

insurance) at the ground control point where I (Daniel James Walsh) will have immediate access to them, to

the extent they are applicable to the UAS. 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...,” and others shall inspect or maintain the

aircraft in due compliance.

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

will not apply to the applicant (Daniel James Walsh). Maintenance will be accomplished by the operator

pursuant to the flight manual and operating handbook provided by DJI. An equivalent level of safety will be

achieved because these small UASs are very limited in size and will carry a small payload and operate only

in restricted areas for limited periods of time. If mechanical issues arise the UAS can land immediately and

will be operating from no higher than 400 feet AGL. The operator will ensure that the UAS 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: 14 C.F.R. §21, subpart H; 14 C.F.R 45.23(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 (55lbs

or less) in motion picture, television, university and Real Estate operations.
Approval of exemptions allowing commercial operations of UASs in the television, video and film industry will

not only enhance safety by reducing risk (conventional aircraft being 4,000lbs or more, operating at

extremely low altitudes with large amounts of combustible fuels ­­ just feet from people and structures), but

also provide unmatched visuals of land and educational facilities. The DJI Phantom 3 Pro, weighing less

than 55 lbs. and powered by batteries, eliminates virtually all of that risk given the reduced mass and lack of

combustible fuel carried on board. The UAS is carried to the film set and not flown. The UAS will carry no

passengers or crew and, therefore, will not expose them to the risks associated with manned aircraft flights.

The operation of a small UAS, weighing less than 55 lbs, conducted in the strict conditions outlined above,

will provide an equivalent 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 sterile environment and, as a result,

are far safer than conventional operations conducted with turbine helicopters operating in close proximity to

the ground and people.

Privacy

All flights will occur over private or controlled access property with the property owner’s prior consent and

knowledge. Filming will be of people who have also consented to being filmed or otherwise have agreed to

be in the area where filming will take place.

Satisfaction of the criteria provided in Section 333 of the Reform Act of 2012­­size, 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 my UAS in the motion picture, television, higher­education and Real Estate

industries.

Best regards,

Daniel James Walsh

310­493­0435

djwalsh@area149.com

135 Market Street

Lewisburg, PA 17837