Benjamin Magro Coastal Helicopters Inc.

141 Peabody Road 

Appleton Maine 04862

bmp@benmagrophoto.com

207 323 2030

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 of 2012

Attachments: 

1) Phantom 3 Professional (Quick Start Guide) 

2) Phantom 3 Safety Guide

References: 

1) FAA Exemption No. 11138, Regulatory Docket No. 

FAA20140481 in the matter of the petition of DOUGLAS 

TRUDEAU

2) FAA Exemption No. 11136, Regulatory Docket No. 

FAA–2014–0508 in the matter of the petition of 

ADVANCED AVIATION SOLUTIONS LLC

3) FAA Exemption No. 11080 Regulatory Docket No. 

FAA20140355

in the matter of the petition of FLYING CAM INC
4) FAA Exemption No.11405, Regulatory Docket No. 

FAA-2015-0118 Bryan Cherry

Dear Sir or Madam,

In accordance with the FAA’s Guidelines for Submitting a 

Petition for Exemption

under section 333 of the FAA Modernization and Reform 

Act of 2012, I Benjamin Magro president of Coastal

Helicopters Inc, referred to hereafter as the petitioner, 

request exemption from the following sections of

Title 14, Code of Federal Regulations :

61.113(a); 61.113(b); 91.119(c); 91.121; 91.151(a);

91.405(a); 91.407(a)(1); 91.409

(a)(1); 91.409(a)(2); 91.417(a) & (b);

In order to operate small unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) 

commercially in airspace regulated by the Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA) for the purposes of aerial

photography, cinematography, videography, mapping, crop 

surveying, inspections and other flight operations that could 

be performed safely and more cost effectively with the

use of small UAS at low altitude within the U.S. national 

airspace system as compared to a manned aircraft.

Operations will be performed only at the request of and 

with the authorization and permission of clients or their 

authorized agents in order to facilitate commerce and raise 

awareness of the beneficial uses of small unmanned air 

systems 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. 

The conditions identified and proposed by the petitioner are 

drawn from references 13.

The FARs

The petitioner seeks exemption from the above mentioned 

FARs for the following reasons;

61.113(a) & (b); The petitioner requests relief in order to 

facilitate the utilization of pilots, who hold a PRIVATE 

PILOT (or greater) certificate. Any pilots operating under 

this exemption would be required to comply with any 

conditions as set forth and in a similar fashion to the 

previously granted exemptions.

91.119(c) As discussed in Exemption 11138 (DOUGLAS 

TRUDEAU), operations conducted closer than 500 feet to 

the ground may require that the UA be operated closer than 

500 feet to essential persons, or objects that would not be 

possible without additional relief. The petitioner requests 

modification, waiver or exemption and clarification 

concerning the terms “congested areas” and “densely 

populated”. The petitioner requests waiver for this 

condition to allow reasonable and responsible

operations in areas of subdivisions and neighborhoods if 

required.
91.121 As discussed in Exemption 11138 (DOUGLAS 

TRUDEAU) is inapplicable since the UAS does not have 

an altimeter and instead utilizes electronic

GPS with a barometric sensor for altitude information.

91.151(a) As discussed in Exemption 11136 (ADVANCED 

AVIATION SOLUTIONS LLC) prior relief has been 

granted for manned aircraft to operate at less

than the prescribed minimums, including Exemption Nos. 

2689, 5745, and 10650. In addition, similar UAS specific

relief has been granted in Exemption Nos. 8811, 10808,

and 10673 for daytime, VFR conditions. The UAS provides 

battery power remaining in percent to the PIC. The UA 

batteries provide approximately 25 minutes of powered

flight. Information provided in the operating documents 

discusses procedures regarding remaining battery power 

management. Those documents contain a condition in 

which the PIC will initiate a landing procedure when 

battery remaining reaches a specified level. Given the 

limitations on proposed operations and the location of those 

proposed operations, The FAA found that a reduced 

minimum power reserve for flight in daytime

VFR conditions was reasonable

.

91.405(a); 91.407(a)(1); 91.409 (a)(1) & (2); 91.417(a) & 

(b) As discussed in Exemption 11138 (DOUGLAS 

TRUDEAU), The petitioner proposes to inspect and

ensure that the UAS is in a condition for safe flight in 

accordance with the operating documents. The FAA found 

that adherence to the petitioner’s operating documents and
the conditions and limitations specified, describing the 

requirements for maintenance, inspection, and 

recordkeeping, were sufficient to ensure that safety would 

not be adversely affected.

The UAS

The DJI Phantom 3 professional is a highly successful 

consumer grade small

rotorcraft in the quad-copter configuration with an 

advertised weight of less than 44

Ounces (1280g) designed primarily to carry aloft a high 

definition camera. It has an advertised maximum speed of 

less than 30 knots (16m/s) and a maximum climb rate of

less than 1200 feet per minute (5 m/s). It is powered by 

four electric motors with a distance between motors of less 

than 14 inches (350mm) It utilizes an internal inertial

measuring unit (IMU) with integrated barometric sensor 

augmented with global positioning system (GPS) to 

maintain its geospatial orientation and position. 

It is controlled primarily through an FCC certified radio 

control (RC) unit at an approved frequency of 2.400 Ghz -

2.483 Ghz. Real time video and telemetry information is 

transmitted back to a ground control station allowing the

operator and/or PIC to monitor battery level, GPS signal 

strength, altitude (AGL), distance from PIC, camera 

imagery, and control camera angle. It has failsafe modes of

operation for either loss of RC or GPS signal. Altitude can 
be limited by the onboard flight controller and maximum 

altitude can be preprogrammed by the PIC.

Battery life limits flight times to approximately 25 minutes. 

The onboard flight controller will warn the pilot via 

telemetry and external lighting cues before reaching a low 

battery state. An automatic termination of flight and 

landing will be initiated when the battery reaches a

predetermined low state. It is anticipated that flights will 

usually last less than 15 minutes. More information is 

available in attachment 1 or

http://www.dji.com/product/phantom-3

Risk mitigation

The petitioner has reviewed FAA exemptions reference’s 

13 Conditions and Limitations section and believes that the 

procedures specified therein are reasonable and will be 

utilized in order to manage and mitigate risk and ensure 

public safety. A preflight checklist will be developed and 

employed to ensure that the UA airworthiness will be 

verified before launch. Airworthiness will be maintained by 

performance of routine inspections before each flight, 

maintaining flight and maintenance logs to record

time on failure prone components.

The petitioner request that in a manner similar to reference 

3, and 4 he be allowed to operate within 5 miles of an 

airport provided that;
“The UA may not operate in Class B, C, or D airspace 

without written approval from the FAA. The UA may not 

operate within 5 nautical miles of the geographic center of 

a non-towered airport as denoted on a current FAA

published aeronautical chart unless a letter of agreement 

with that airport’s management is obtained, and the 

operation is conducted in accordance with a NOTAM as 

required by the operator’s COA. 

The letter of agreement with the airport management must 

be made available to the Administrator upon request.”

Operations within 5 miles of an airport are not anticipated 

to be routine but the petitioner is requesting a mechanism to 

facilitate such activities without requesting a new and

separate exemption(s) should the need arise. Operations 

within class B airspace are not requested due to the lack of 

mode C transponder.

Public interest

Use of the UAS in lieu of a manned aircraft would enhance 

safety and reduce the environmental impact as compared to 

similar operations conducted with manned aircraft of 

greater proportions, carrying a crew and flammable fuel.

Additionally, use of the UAS in order to facilitate 

commerce could lead to economic growth. Operations for 

this petition will enable service for property owners or their 

designees seeking an enhanced perspective for 

characteristics, amenities, and benefits of their desired 

photographic subjects that cannot be displayed through 

ground level videography/photography. 
Aerial photography is a valuable marketing tool that can 

lead to increased commerce and enhance personal 

photography. Crop surveying applications could lead to 

decreased use of pesticides and fertilizer and conservation 

of water as well as increased crop yields and decreased 

costs. Aerial surveying and inspections can increase work 

site efficiency, improve volumetric estimations and reduce 

risks. The petitioner will provide clients with photographic 

data for these purposes on a ‘for hire’ basis acting as an

independent contractor. A visual observer will be utilized. 

Liability insurance will be obtained commensurate with the 

granting of this request for exemption. Flight data

including UA flight time, Control Unit operation time, 

incident, accident, and details concerning any deviations 

from normal operations will be available to FAA for use in

collecting data regarding the use of UAS as part of this 

application.

Conclusion

The petitioner is requesting this exemption for the purposes 

of “aerial photography, cinematography, videography, 

mapping, crop surveying, inspections and

other flight operations” similar to Reference 4. 

The reason for a broad based request is that the petitioner 

wishes to utilize a business strategy of capitalizing on 

opportunities as they may arise in the future without the 

long turnaround time associated with additional 

exemptions.
The petitioner's business model is based on the idea of 

offering small UAS services to individuals or companies 

who wish to employ these services as a safe, effective, and 

legal option to promote their business or hobby. 

The petitioner’s research shows demand for these services 

currently exists in the real estate market and other markets. 

Videography and photography are the primary objective of 

this petition. 

An internet search shows that many are currently operating 

similar UAS in this fashion without, it is assumed, FAA 

authorization. The petitioner has refrained from engaging in 

commercial use of the UAS. The primary purpose of 

seeking this exemption is to obtain the capability to offer 

those services while remaining in compliance. 

The petitioner has 25 years of experience in commercial 

aviation and holds an FAA airman certificate, Commercial 

Pilot Helicopter, Flight Instructor Helicopter, Airframe and 

Power Plant Mechanic, Inspection Authorization 

Certificates # 3490668 and a second class medical 

certificate issued January 2015. Petitioner has 2700 PIC 

hours in helicopters.

Respectfully submitted,

Benjamin Magro Coastal Helicopters Inc.