### 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!know n as the!“DJI!Phantom!3!Advanced. ”

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

This!ex emption!would!permit!commercial!operation!by!Thomas!Meredith!Photography,!Inc.!to!use! the!DJI!Phantom!3!Advanced!to!c onduct!flights!specifically!for,!and!limit ed!to:1)! Real estate!photography!and!videography when!specifically!contracted!to!do!so. 2)! Special eve nt!photography!and!videography!when!specifically!contracted!to!do!so.!

These!flights!will!be!subject!to!strict!operating!requirements!and!conditions!d efined!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 P hantom!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!s tart!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!

rem ote!controller,!and!mobile!device )!charged!for!the!flight.!! Will!ensure!UA!softwa re!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!obstruct ions!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!tak en!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!o f!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!maxi mum!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!dire ctly!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!L egislature’s!House!Bill!912 ,!also!known!as!the!“Texas!Privacy!Act

, ”!that!specifically! addresses!the!use!of!images!captur ed!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!miles8)Failsafes:!!The!DJI!Phantom!3!Advance d 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!with out 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!P IC!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!

re corded,!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!profes sional!photographer!since!2004;!

self

g employed/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!pilo t!who!also!has!multiple!years!of!experience!with!the!Phantom!series,!the!Digital!Managing!

Editor!of!the!Austin!American

g Statesman!newspaper,!Zach!Ryall.

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

Mered ith!Photography,!Inc.

, to!operate!limited,!low

g risk!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!ov er!10!years,!the!FAA!can!be!assured!that!I!will! conduct!sUAS!flights!with!the!utmost!level!of!professionalism!and!safet y,!my!reputation!as!a!small!business! and!private!contractor!depends!on!it.!

Thank!you!for!your!consideration,

Thomas!Meredith

2201!Will ow!Creek!Drive

#139
Austin,!TX!78741

512.632.8120 tmeredithphoto@gmail.com

### !!!!!!!!