August 7, 2015

Radames Cruz Jr.

10135 NW 30th Avenue

Miami, FL 33147

HIALEAHP@GMAIL.COM

FAA

Docket Management Facility

U.S. Department of Transportation

1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE

West Building, Ground Floor, Room W12-140

Washington, DC 20590

RE: Re: Exemption Request Section 333 of the FAA Reform Act of the Federal Aviation Regulations from 

14 C.F.R. 45.23(b); 14 C.F.R. Part 21; 14 C.F.R. 61.113(a)&(b); 91.7(a); 91.9(b) (2); 91.103(b); 91.109; 

119.121; 91.151(a); 91.203(a)&(b); 91.405(a); 91.407(a) (1); 91.409(a) (2); 91.417(a)&(b)

To whom it may concern:

A semi-brief bio of myself - I am a 29 year old quadcopter enthusiast and amateur photographer. I have 

been filming for over 10 years, both in the realms of both photography and videography. I do not have a 

business yet but I hope to start my own photography business within a year and offering the services of 

aerial photography, cinematography and videography will only enhance my business opportunities.

I have purchased a DJI Phantom 3 Professional and have logged many hours flying the quadcopter as a 

hobby and feel very comfortable and experienced with it. Aerial Photography is a passion of mine and I 

seek to legally use the quadcopter for business purposes. The search of earning money, while 

performing a service that we feel passionate about, is what most people strive for. For the first time in 

my life, I believe I have found my dream career. 

In South Florida, Miami to be exact, there is a big real estate boom. Having this extra tool in my 

photography repertoire will set me apart from your average photography companies. I hope to provide 

my services for a fraction of what bigger production studios offer to real estate companies.

This request for exemption will benefit the public by providing the real estate community and 

homeowners a much lower cost for aerial photos. The cost of UAS operations is also significantly lower 

than traditional aerial photography flights, making these services available to smaller businesses or 

individuals that otherwise may not be able to afford them. This in turn allows businesses to better serve 

their clients, increasing the public benefit as a whole

And now I will begin my petition for exemption below.

Regulations from which the exemption is requested: 14 CFR Part 21 14 C.F.R. 45.23(b) 14 CFR 61.113 (a) 

& (b) 14 C.F.R. 91.7 (a) 14 CFR 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 CFR 91.151 (a) 14 CFR 91.203 (a) & (b) 14 CFR 91.405 (a) 14 CFR 407 (a) (1) 14 CFR 409 (a) (2) 

14 CFR 417 (a) & (b)

Pursuant to Section 333 of the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012 (the Reform Act), I, Radames 

Cruz Jr., hereby apply for an exemption from Federal Aviation Regulations (FARs) detailed below to allow 

for commercial operations of a DJI Phantom 3 Professional four rotor UAS with an attached DJI Gimbal 

Mount holding a 4K UHD Camera for the purpose of aerial photography, cinematography and 

videography.

As the Reform Act allows the FAA to “establish requirements for the safe operation of such aircraft 

systems in the national airspace system”, I, Radames Cruz Jr., use of the Phantom 3 Professional will 

provide the following benefits and enhance or provide an equivalent level of safety:

1. The DJI Phantom 3 has a maximum takeoff weight of less than 3 pounds and thus offers a lightweight, 

small and compact video platform compared to manned aircraft.

2. The DJI Phantom 3 offers significant safety, noise, emission, security and environmental benefits not 

available to larger manned aircraft.

3. The DJI Phantom 3 has numerous safety features such as Failsafe mode, automatic Return home 

feature should signal between PIC and UAS be interrupted, GPS based altitude and distance locks, Flight 

Limits function and low battery warnings. We feel that these features addressed in more detail below 

and in the Phantom 3 User Manual provide an equivalent level of safety.

4. Operations utilizing the DJI Phantom 3 Professional will provide a benefit to the general public and 

serve the public interest by providing the services of aerial photography and video to numerous 

businesses and individuals for considerably less than the previously only available option of utilizing 

manned aircraft at an equivalent level of safety.

The Unmanned Aircraft System, Operations and an Equivalent Level of Safety

The safe operation of the UAS will be the first priority before, during and after every operation.

I will only operate in reasonably safe environments that are strictly controlled, are away from power 

lines, elevated lights, airports and actively populated areas.

I will conduct extensive preflight inspections and protocols, during which safety carries primary 

importance.

The DJI Phantom 3 has a maximum takeoff weight of 1300 grams or approximately 2.9 pounds. It has a 

diagonal length of 590mm and a maximum speed of 16 meters per second.

The UAS utilizes GPS/GLONASS location and is controlled by a 2.4 GHz transmitter.

All UAS operations will be conducted at Visual Line Of Sight (VLOS) at no more than 400 feet AGL.
No UAS operations will be conducted within 5 NM of an airport.

All nonparticipating persons shall be a minimum of 500 feet from the UAS.

If a nonparticipating person comes within 500 feet of the UAS, flight operations will cease immediately. 

All UAS operations shall take place during daylight hours under conditions equivalent to Visual Flight 

Rules (VFR) with the UAS no more than 3/4 NM from the PIC.

All UAS operations will have a PIC and a Visual Observer (VO) present and all operations will be within 

line of sight (LOS) of the PIC and VO.

The UAS will yield to all manned aircraft at all times.

All required permits and permissions will be obtained from local and state government should they be 

required.

At no time shall the UAS be operated with missing or manufacturer unapproved parts, or in any 

condition that could pose a hazard to any other aircraft or structure or person on the ground.

The Phantom 3 UAS will utilize GPS/GLONASS location, auto return home and will never be operated at

below 20% batter capacity.

The DJI Phantom 3 UAS is a small and safe sub 3 pound plastic and composite aircraft utilizing four 

propellers driven by a 4480 mAh LiPo 4s 15.2v smart battery with a MAX flight time of 23 minutes. The 

remote control/transmitter operates at 2.4 GHz. The aircraft’s software has been set to FAA regulations 

of 400’ ceiling and recognizes zones around airports and forbids flight within 1.5 miles of the center of a 

type A airport, and outside the 1.5 miles up to 5 miles the altitude increase from 35’ to 400’ in a conical 

fashion. For example: at 1.5 miles out your limit is 35’ and at 3.25 Miles from the center the max altitude 

AGL is 217.5’. I think this feature is great and allows those who wish to take photos with their drone at 

say 10’ AGL 2 miles from an Airport, they are more than safe in doing so. The incorporated FLY SAFE 

technology also restricts flights in areas deemed not permitted by the FAA, for example Washington D.C. 

The aircraft will automatically return to point of origin or descend in place should signal with the 

transmitter be lost. The UAS is unmanned, operates at low altitudes, does not run on combustible fuel, 

has very low decibel level noise emissions and has a small payload capacity and short flight time, thus 

significantly reducing current risk levels involved with utilizing manned aircraft for aerial photography. 

Additionally, past purchasers of aerial photography have had to contract with manned aircraft 

operations at a significant expense. Radames Cruz Jr.’s UAS operations will provide a public benefit in 

allowing more people to access aerial photography and videography at a significantly lower price and in 

the process we will be providing that data at a greater or at least equivalent level of safety as compared

to similar manned operations. It is the applicants belief that the small size of the Phantom 3 UAS, the 

basic operating parameters outlined above, the specific exemptions discussed below, the fully trained, 

certified and vetted crew and the equivalent level of safety provided at a much lower cost to the general 
public will allow the FAA to grant an exemption to Radames Cruz Jr. for commercial UAS aerial 

photography operations under the Reform Act of 2012.

Conclusion

I would like to conclude by giving thanks for your time and consideration concerning this petition for 

exemption. Photography has been a passion of mine since I was a child. The aerial aspect of 

photography and videography only fuel my desires to master my craft. Of late, I have only flown as a

hobby to not break any laws. I see nothing but positive coming from it from this new technology. My 

home city, Miami, makes plenty of money from the sale of real estate. Realtors would be at a great 

advantage with my HD photography of properties. The consumer gets a clearer view at properties. I 

hopefully transform my hobby into a new and exciting career and add a new repertoire to my work. 

The exemption requests follow below. The DJI Phantom 3 User’s Manuals links are as follows:

Quick Start Guide: 

http://download.djiinnovations.com/downloads/phantom_3/en/Phantom_3_Professional_Quick_Start_

Guid e_en.pdf User Manual: 

http://download.djiinnovations.com/downloads/phantom_3/en/Phantom_3_Professional_User_Manua

l_v1. 0_en.pdf

Sincerely,

Radames Cruz Jr.

10135 NW 30 Avenue

Miami, FL 33147

P: 305-846-2043

HIALEAHP@GMAIL.COM