**August 3, 2015**

**Old Town Aerial Productions, LLC**

**943 Catawba Wells Ct Rock Hill, SC 29732** 

**U.S. Department of Transportation Docket Operations**  **West Building Ground Floor**

**Room W12-140 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE.,**  **Washington, DC 20590-0001**

RE: Exemption Request Section 333 of the FAA Reform Act of2012 and Part 11 of the Federal Aviation Regulations

**Dear Sir or Madam; In accordance with the Public Guidance for Petition**  **s for Exemption filed under Section 333, Old Town Aerial Productions, LLC requests exemption**  **from the Federal Aviation Regulations to allow for commercial UAS operations of a DJI Phantom 3 Profes**  **sional for the purpose of aerial photography, real estate marketing, surveying, agricultural mapp**  **ing and other flight operations that can be performed safely and more cost effectively t**  **han a traditional manned aircraft. Applicant:** 

**Old Town Aerial Productions, LLC Ryan Young (Partner)**  **Brent Durling (Partner)**

**943 Catawba Wells Ct Rock Hill, SC 29732**  **(843)509-4318**

**Attachments: 1. DJI Phantom 3 Professional User Manual**  **2. DJI Phantom 3 Professional Release Notes 3. DJI Phantom 3 Safety Guidelines Disclaimer**  **4. DJI Phantom Pilot Training Guide 5. Intelligent Flight Battery Safety Guidelines**  **Regulations from which the exemption is requested: 14 CFR 21, Subpart H**  **14 CFR 45.23 (b) 14 CFR 61.113 (a) & (b) & 14 CFR 61.133 (a)**  **14 CFR 91.7 (a) 14 CFR 91.9 (b)(2)**  **14 CFR 91.103 (b)(2)**

**14 CFR 91.109 14 CFR 91.119 (c)** 

**14 CFR 91.121 14 CFR 91.151 (a)**  **14 CFR 91.203 (a) & (b) 14 CFR 91.405 (a)** **14 CFR 91.407 (a) (l)**

**14 CFR 91.409 (a) (l) & (a) (2) 14 CFR 91.417 (a) & (b)**  **14 CFR 21, Subpart H- In consideration of the size, weight, speed, and limited operating area**  **associated with this U AS and its operation, Old To wn Aerial Productions, LLC requests relief from 14**  **CFR part 21, Subpart H, and any associated noise certification a**  **nd testing requirements of part 36. The UAS will carry neither pilot, passenger, explosive materials**  **or flammable liquids. 14 CFR 45.23 (b) - Even though the UAS will have no**  **airworthiness certificate, an exemption may be**

**needed as the UAS will have no entrance to the cabi n, cockpit or pilot station on which the word**  **"Experimental" can be placed. Given the size of the UAS, two-inch 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 t he UAS will see the identification of the UAS as**  **"Experimental." 14 CFR 61.113 (a) & (b) & 14 CFR 61.133 (a) - Since**  **the UAS will not carry a pilot or passengers, Old Town Aerial Productions, LLC requests a relief**  **from these regulations. Any pilot in command or (PI C)**  **operating the UAS will hold a Sport Pilot (or great er) certificate. A visual observer or (VO) will be**  **utilized and required to communicate verbally at all times. The**  **UAS will be limited to operations within visual distance of both the PIC and VO. All UAS operations**  **will take place in a controlled area. The risks associated with the use of a UAS are far less than**  **similar commercial aircraft operations. 14 CFR 91.7 (a) - Since the UAS will not carry a pi**  **lot or passengers there will be no airworthiness certificate issued for the aircraft, should this ex**  **emption be granted, no FAA regulatory standard exis ts**  **for determining airworthiness. Given the size of th e aircraft, maintenance, and use of safety checklis**  **t prior to each flight, an equivalent level of safety**  **will be provided. All flights will be in accordanc e**  **with the safety and maintenance recommendations fou nd in the DJI Phantom attachments.**  **14 CFR 91.9 (b) (2) - Given the size and configurat ion, the UAS has no ability to carry a flight manua**  **l on the aircraft. There is no room, capacity, or pil**  **ot on board to adequately carry a flight manual. An**

**equivalent level of safety will be maintained by ke eping the flight manual at the ground station where**  **the UAS pilot will have immediate access to it. 14 CFR 91.103 (b) (2) -As no FAA approved flight ma**  **nuals will be provided for the aircraft an exemption is needed. Alternate procedures including**  **but not limited to reviewing weather conditions, checking flight battery requirements, checking take**  **off and landing distances along with those found in the attached "DJI Pilot Training" will be implement**  **ed. These actions will provide an equivalent or higher level of safety.**  **14 CFR 91.109- UAS and remotely piloted aircraft do not have fully functional dual controls. Flight**  **control is achieved through the use of a control bo x that communicates with the aircraft via radio**  **communications. An equivalent level of safety will be achieved using the real time ground station data**  **and given the UAS will carry neither a pilot nor pa ssengers.**  **14 CFR 91.119 (c) - The UAS will never be operated at an altitude higher than 400 feetAGL. The**  **UAS will operate in safe areas away from public and traffic and only with permission of the property** 

**and structure owners. The UAS will also be restrict ed by the flight controller to a maximum vertical**  **height of 400 feet AGL, and 1500 feet horizontal. G iven the size, weight, maneuverability and speed**  **of the UAS, an equivalent or higher level of safety will be achieved.**  **14 CFR 91.121- As the UAS may not have a barometric altimeter, but instead a GPS barometric**  **sensor for altitude information an exemption may be required. An equivalent level of safety will be**  **achieved using a ground station which links to a te lemetry data link. This will provide the pilot with**  **live flight data monitoring, confirming the altitud e of the launch site shown on the GPS altitude**  **indicator prior to flight. 14 CFR 91.151 (a) - The UAS has a limited range and**  **will be limited to operations in a controlled environment. The battery power the UAS provides app**  **roximately 23 minutes of flight time. The UAS is unable to meet the 30 minute reserve requirement**  **and therefore requires an exemption. An equivalent level of safety will be achieved by moni**  **toring the battery through the ground station and landing with a minimum of 30 percent battery power**  **remaining.**

**14 CFR 91.203 (a) & (b) - Given the size and config uration, the UAS has no ability to carry a flight**  **manual on the aircraft. There is no room, capacity, or pilot on board to adequately carry a flight**  **manual. An equivalent level of safety will be maint ained by keeping the flight manual at the ground**  **station where the UAS pilot will have immediate acc ess to it.**  **Given the following sections only apply to aircraft with an airworthiness certificate, these sections**  **do not apply to this applicant. As a safety precaution**  **, the operator will perform preflight inspections a nd**  **ensure UAS is in working condition before initiatin g each flight:**  **14 CFR 91.405 (a) 14 CFR 91.407 (a) (1)**  **14 CFR 91.409 (a) (l) & (a) (2) 14 CFR 91.417 (a) & (b)**  Equivalent Level of Safety **In addition to the safety standards mentioned above the UAS will adhere to the following additional**  **guidelines: 1. The UAS will not be operated within 5 miles of a**  **n airport unless prior contact to Air Traffic**

**Control has been established. 2. Flights will not exceed an airspeed of 36 mph (3**  **1.3 knots) 3. Flights will be operated at or below an altitude**  **never exceeding 400 feet AGL. 4. The PIC and VO will communicate verbally at all**  **times. 5. UAS operations will not be conducted during nigh**  **t. 6. All operations will be conducted under visual me**  **teorological conditions. 7. The UAS will land with a minimum 25 percent batt**  **ery reserve remaining. 8. The UAS will only be piloted within visual line**  **of sight. 9. The UAS will utilize an internal flight safety f**  **eature that will return to a preprogrammed position and land if communication with the remote**  **control is lost. 10. Preflight inspections and protocol will be foll**  **owed prior to all operations. 11. The UAS will abort flight in the event of unpre**  **dictable obstacles or emergencies.**

Public Interest **We believe the use of a UAS in lieu of a manned air craft would enhance safety and reduce the**  **environmental impact compared to similar operations conducted with a manned aircraft carrying a crew**  **and flammable fuel. The use of a UAS in the real e state industry provides both the buyer and seller w**  **ith a higher level of marketing and service. The UAS is able to**  **provide a view which encompasses the entire property in a single photo or short video clip. Whe**  **n compared to similar operations, utilizing a UAS poses much less of a safety concern for the general**  **public with less fuel, time, noise and other**

**resources.** Privacy **All flights will occur over private or controlled a reas with the owner's consent. Capturing people in**  **images will rarely occur. If a person is captured i n a collected image they will have consented prior**  **to filming or otherwise have agreed to being in the ar**  **ea prior to the filming taking place. Old Town Aerial Productions, LLC**