July!9,!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.

To!Whom!It!May!Concern:

Pursuant!to!Section!333!of!The!FAA!Modernization!and!Reform!Act!of!2012!(the!“Reform!Act”),!

and!14!C.F.R.!Part!11,!Thomas!Meredith!Photography,!Inc.,!an!incorporated!professional!

photography!company, hereby!applies!for!an!exemption!from!the!Federal!Aviation!Regulations!

listed!below!to!allow!operation!of!a Small!Unmanned!Aircraft!System!(sUAS)!commercially!in!

airspace!regulated!by!the!Federal!Aviation!Administration!(FAA).

Regulations!from!which!exemption!is!requested:

14!C.F.R.!Part!21

14!C.F.R.!45.23

14!C.F.R.!45.29

14!C.F.R.!61.3

14!C.F.R.!61.23

14!C.F.R.!61.113(a)!&!(b)

14!C.F.R.!61.133(a)

14!C.F.R.!91.7(a)

14!C.F.R.!91.9

14!C.F.R.!91.109(a)

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

14!C.F.R. 91.401!– 91.417

The!specific!sUAS!that!would!be!used!is!known as the!“DJI!Phantom!3!Advanced.”

The!sole!operator!of!the!sUAS!would!be!Thomas!Meredith.

This!exemption!would!permit!commercial!operation!by!Thomas!Meredith!Photography,!Inc.!to!use!

the!DJI!Phantom!3!Advanced!to!conduct!flights!specifically!for,!and!limited!to:
1)!Real estate!photography!and!videography when!specifically!contracted!to!do!so.

2)!Special event!photography!and!videography!when!specifically!contracted!to!do!so.!

These!flights!will!be!subject!to!strict!operating!requirements!and!conditions!defined!by!the!UAS!

manufacturer’s!standards!and!procedures!to!ensure!an!equivalent!level!of!safety!to!currently!authorized!

operations!using!manned!aircraft.

The$UAS$and$its$Proposed$Use:

The!“DJI!Phantom!3!Advanced” is!the!newest!and!latest!UAS!in!DJI’s Phantom!series.!!It!was released!in!the!

Spring!of!2015!and!equipped!with!multiple automated!failsafe!functions.

1)Before!every!flight!Thomas!Meredith!will!do!a!preflight!check!to!ensure!motors!are!functioning normally

and!there!are!no!irregular!sounds!at!start!up;!will!inspect!propellers!to!ensure!they!are!not!damaged!

and/or have!any!cracks!or!warping!that!could!affect!the!flight;!will!have!all!associated!batteries!(UA,!the!

remote!controller,!and!mobile!device)!charged!for!the!flight.!!Will!ensure!UA!software!as!well!as!DJI!

application!on!mobile!device!is current!and!updated!as!needed.!

2)The!area!around!the!flight!will!be!surveyed!for!any!obstructions!such!as!power!lines,!cell!phone!

towers,!antennas,!trees,!light!poles,!or!any!other!object!that!might!interfere!with!the!flight.!!!

3)Weather!and!wind!conditions!will!also!be!taken!into!account!before!flight.!!!No!flights!will!be!conducted!

in!the!rain!or!when!the!wind!is!over!15!miles!per!hour.!

4)!All!flights!will!be!kept!under!400!feet!above!ground and!will!maintain!visual!line!of!sight!between!the UA!

and!PIC,!Thomas!Meredith.!!Photographing!a!personal!residence!for!a!real!estate!agent!or!specific!event!will!

not!require!the!UA!to!be!out!of!line!of!sight.!Although!it’s!maximum!speed!is!16m/s!(35mph)!I!do!NOT!

intended!to!fly!it!over!10mph.!

5)!Flights!will!only!be!conducted!when!specifically!contracted!and!the!necessary!permissions and!consent

are!obtained!from!the!owners!of!a!given!piece!of!property.!!Flights!will!not!be!conducted!directly!overhead!

any!groups!of!people.!!Any!images!of!people!in!the!public!domain!will!be!taken!at!an!oblique!angle,!off!to!

the!side,!and!not!directly!from!above.

6)In!addition!to!following!the!necessary!Federal!steps!to!ensure!proper!safety!of!UAS!flights,!since!my!name!

and!reputation!as!a!professional!photographer!are!important!and!at!stake,!I!intended!to!strictly!adhere!to!

the!2013!Texas!Legislature’s!House!Bill!912,!also!known!as!the!“Texas!Privacy!Act,”!that!specifically!

addresses!the!use!of!images!captured!by!a!UAS!in!the!state!of!Texas.!

7)!Specifications!of!the!UAS,!DJI!Phantom!3!Advanced:!

a)Weight!including!battery,!camera,!propellers:!!1280g!or!2.82!pounds

b)Diagonal!Size:!!590mm,!aprox!24!inches

c)Max!ascent!speed:!5m/s

d)Max!decent!speed:!3m/s

e)Max!speed:!16m/s

f)Operating!Frequency!of!Controller:!!2.400!GHz!– 2.483!GHz

g)Transmitting!Distance:!2000!meters!or!approximately!1.24!miles
8)Failsafes:!!The!DJI!Phantom!3!Advanced uses!satellite!GPS!to!establish!a!“home!point”!(where!it!took!off)!

as!well!as!help!it!fly.! If!GPS!is!disrupted,!the!Phantom!3!has!a!vision!positioning!system!that!allows!it!to!fly!

and!maintain!altitude!without GPS.!!The!DJI!app!on!a!mobile!device!will!warn!the!PIC!when!the!battery!is!

low.!!If!the!PIC!still!does!not!begin to!land,!the!Phantom!3!will!begin!an!automated!Return!to!Home!

procedure!so!it!can!land!with!the!amount!of!battery!power!it!has!left.!!!!However!I!do!not!foresee!that!

happening,!as!I!will!end!the!flight!and!land when!the!battery!capacity!reaches!25!to!30%!to!ensure!enough!

time for!a!safe,!reasonable!landing!on!my!own.!!!If!the!connection!between!the!remote!controller!and!UA!is!

disrupted!for!more!than!3!seconds,!the!UA!will!begin!an!automated!Return!to!Home!procedure.!!!When!

connection!is!reestablished!the!PIC!can!regain!manual!control!of!the!UA.!!!The!Phantom!3!also!has!an!

automated!Return!to!Home!button!that!can!be!enabled!at!anytime!by!the!PIC.

9)The!DJI!application!on!a!mobile!device!has!automated!flight!log!capability!so!all!metadata!of!the!flight!is!

recorded,!including how!long!I’ve!flown!and!so!I!can!keep!track!of!the!wear!and!tear!on!the!UA!over!time!

and!how!much!the!batteries!have!been!used.!

10)I!do!not!intend!to!fly!near!any!airports.!

The$Pilot$in$Charge:$Thomas$Meredith

11)!I!am!34!years!old.!I!am!in!good!physical!and!metal!health.!!No!current!physical!limitations.!I!am!not, nor!

have!I!ever!been, on!any!medications!for!any!mental!or!emotional!disorders;!nor!have!I!ever!been!

diagnosed!with!any!mental!or!emotional disorders.!!I!have!been!a!professional!photographer!since!2004;!

selfgemployed/freelance!since!2006. I!have!been!involved!in!real!estate!photography!since!2006.!!I’ve!had!

extensive!flying!time!with!this!specific!UAS,!the!DJI!Phantom!3!Advanced,!and!have!flown!this!UAS!with!a!

licensed!pilot!who!also!has!multiple!years!of!experience!with!the!Phantom!series,!the!Digital!Managing!

Editor!of!the!Austin!AmericangStatesman!newspaper,!Zach!Ryall.

I!respectively!request!exemption!under!Section!333!to!allow!Thomas!Meredith,!acting!under!Thomas!

Meredith!Photography,!Inc., to!operate!limited,!lowgrisk!commercial!sUAS!flights!for!the!purposes!stated!in!

this!petition.!!I!have!not!invested!money!into!a!sUAS!to!use it as!a!toy!for!reckless recreation!and!will!not!

treat!it!as!such.!As!a!professional!photographer!for!over!10!years,!the!FAA!can!be!assured!that!I!will!

conduct!sUAS!flights!with!the!utmost!level!of!professionalism!and!safety,!my!reputation!as!a!small!business!

and!private!contractor!depends!on!it.!

Thank!you!for!your!consideration,

Thomas!Meredith

2201!Willow!Creek!Drive

#139

Austin,!TX!78741

512.632.8120

tmeredithphoto@gmail.com

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