Kyle Snyder, NGAT Program Director ITRE@NCSU

919

- 515

- 8623 | kyle_snyder@ncsu.edu Centennial Campus, Box 8601 http://www.itre.ncsu.edu/ngat Raleigh, NC 27695 July 31 , 2015

Via Electronic Filing Attn: Docket Operations U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Room W12

- 140 West Building Ground Floor Washington, DC 20590

- 0001

Re: Eligibility for “Summary Grant” Process Exemption Petition of North Carolina State University
pursuant to Section 333 of the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012

To the Flight Standards Service :

This letter shall serve as a petition for a Section 333 Exemption for North Carolina State University (“ NCSU”) pursuant to Section 333 of the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012

, Pub. L. No. 112

- 95, 126 Stat. 11 (2012) (“Section 333”)

, and certain sections of Part 11 of Title

14 of the Code of Federal Regulations

. As discussed below, this Petition qualifies for the FAA’s “summary grant” procedures, and to the extent necessary, Petitioner respectfully requests that the FAA process the instant Petition using the summary grant procedures

. North Carolina State University seeks the Section 333 Exemption for its NextGen Air Transportation (“NGAT”) program , which is a division of the Institute for Transportation Research and Education ( “ ITRE ” ) located at North Carolina State University. For convenience, this Petition will use the terms “Petitioner,” “NGAT ,” “NCSU” and “North Carolina State University” interchangeably. 1

Introduction

North Carolina State University is one of the sixteen constituent member institutions in The University of North Carolina statewide s ystem

. The Institute for Transportation Research and Education (ITRE) is “a university

- based institute committed to leadership in the study of surface and air transportation issues through fostering analytical thinking, integrating technology in education and research, serving as a catalyst for problem solving, and cultivating professionals and students dedicated to excellence in transportation.” 2 Established by the North Carolina General Assembly in 1976, ITRE is an inter

- institutional research center administered by NCSU that conducts, inter al ia, air transportation research (through NGAT), while providing professional training and educational opportunities. As such, ITRE and NGAT serve all constituent institutions in The University of North Carolina statewide system as well as various state gov ernment agencies,

1 Where applicable in the Introductory section of this Petition, the terms “NGAT,” “ITRE,” and “NCSU” are not used interchangeably.

2 ITRE Mission Statement, available at http://www.itre.ncsu.e du/ITRE/about/about.html

.North Carolina State University (NGAT) Petition for Exemption Pursuant to Section 333 July 21, 2015 Page 2

political subdivisions, and in partnership with various transportatio n professionals worldwide

. On May 8, 2015, Petitioner was awarded FAA Center of Excellence recognition as a member of

ASSURE. 3 Given Petitioner’s participation i n the ASSURE Alliance 4 and Petitioner’s experience with several COAs (discussed below), there is virtually no organization in the United States with greater qualification or more experien ce in the safe operation of unmanned aircraft systems (“UAS”)

The fo cus of NGAT is to help develop and integrate UAS technology, production, education, and use into the fabric of North Carolina society, including the economy, education, government, and other societal structures and to generally provide a platform and resou rce center to grow the unmanned systems industry in the Tar Heel State

. Further information regarding

Petitioner’s activities and mission is set forth in Exhibit A to this Petition. As such, Petitioner currently holds several Certificates of Authorizatio n or Waiver (“COAs”) for its operations in

several distinct locations across North Carolina. Petitioner’s COAs are set forth in Exhibit B to
this Petition. Petitioner’s COAs authorize certain limited operations in certain limited areas of the state, and those COAs and operations are of critical importance to Petitioner, Petitioner’s mission, and the private parties that work with NGAT.

In furtherance of Petitioner’s program, mission, and development, NCSU by this Petition

seeks additional authority

— pursuant to Section 333

— to engage in UAS operations that are separate and apart from (and in addition to) the authority granted under the COAs. Section 333 authorization will facilitate NGAT’s ability to better serve various public and private p artnerships throughout the State of North Carolina. Thus, a grant of the instant Petition is important not only to NGAT but more importantly is in the public interest of North Carolina, its residents, businesses, workers, and public institutions of all st ripes. Were Petitioner to have to wait for the FAA to issue final rules governing non

- recreational use of UAS, Petitioner would be irreparably harmed, and residents, businesses, workers, and public institutions in North Carolina who may rely on

Petitioner ’s services would be irreparably harmed. Accordingly , Petitioner seeks authority to use UAS to provide services with the following functions (and any other similar functions not specifically catalogued below) :

- aerial a pplication

- a erial data c ollectio n

- aerial s urvey

- a erial photography/video graphy

- asset m anagement

- environmental m onitoring

- f ire i nvestigation

- g eospatial data collection

3 See FAA Selects Mississippi State University Team As Center of Excellence for Unmanned Aircraft Systems , FAA Press Release (May 8, 2015), available at the following URL address: http://www.faa.gov/news/press_releases/news_story.cfm?newsId=18794

.

4 See generally http://www.assureuas.org/

.North Carolina State University (NGAT) Petition for Exemption Pursuant to Section 333 July 21, 2015 Page 3

- inspection of c onstruction sites

- inspection of infrastructure

- m aintenance monitoring (site s , asset m ana gement )

- mapping

- p ublic safety s upport

- precision a griculture

- r emote sens ing

- precision p hotography

- search and rescue o perations

- t raffic monitoring

- training for UAS o perations

The above activities may be generally classified as a combination of aerial data collection, and substance application, which fall squarely within the categories of use that have been granted in upwards of 700 Section 333 Exemption cases. Petitioner seeks authority to use any of the following UAS for the a bove

- referenced purposes: DJI Inspire; DJI Phantom 2; Leica Geosystems Aibot X6; Trimble UX5; PrecisionHawk Lancaster III ; Prioria Maveric ; Sentera Vireo, and Sensefly eBee

. Petitioner has not been able to locate any FAA Section 333 Exemption s grant for

t he Vireo UAS, though it appears one such petition is currently pending in FAA Docket No. FAA

2015

- 2276

- 0001

. In the event a grant is issued in Docket No. FAA

- 2015

- 2276

- 0001 prior to a grant of the NCSU instant Petition, it is respectfully requested that th e Vireo unmanned sy stem be considered a part of this instant Petition as well , otherwise a second exemption request will be submitted by the Petitioner for the Vireo system.

In light of the background above , pursuant to Section 333, Petitioner seeks exemption from

those certain Federal Aviation Regulations ( “ FARs ” ) discussed below. Petitioner believes that the instant Petition is substantially similar to other Section 333 Exemption Petitions previously filed with and granted by the FAA

— includi ng, for example, the Petitions in Grant of Exemption Nos. 11109, 11112, and 11213

— such that this Petition qualifies for “summary grant” treatment under the FAA’s policy announced and implemented in early April 2015 and without need for the FAA to solicit p ublic comment on this proposal. Moreover, each of the specific unm anned aircraft
systems p roposed to be used by Petitioner pursuant to a grant of the instant Petition

— DJI Inspire; DJI Phantom 2; Leica Geosystems Aibot X6; Trimble UX5; PrecisionHawk Lancas ter III; Prioria Maveric; Sentera Vireo; and Sensefly eBee

— has b een the subject of at least one Section 333 Exemption Petition previously granted by the FAA. Exhibit C to this Petition contains a table showing each UAS that Petitioner seeks to use pursuant to a grant of this Petition and the file number of one or more Section 333 Exemption Grants issued previously by the FAA for the same

UAS.

In support of this Petit ion, consistent with Petitioner’s current operational protocols and policies, and as a commitment to air safety , Petitioner shows the following:North Carolina State University (NGAT) Petition for Exemption Pursuant to Section 333 July 21, 2015 Page 4

Proposed Conditions and Limitations

This Petition seeks authority to operate each of Petitioner’s small UAS (sUAS) subj ect to the following conditions (and any other conditions and restrictions imposed on Petitioner by the FAA):

* Each of Petitioner’s operators will be familiar with the respective manufacturer’s

user manual and will maintain a copy of the user manual at t he location of all flights.

* None of Petitioner’s unmanned aircraft (“UA”), including payload, camera, gimba l,

etc. will exceed 55 lbs.

* Petitioner will not operate any UA at a speed exceeding 100 mph (87 knots).

* Petitioner will operate its UA s only at altitudes that will not exceed 400 feet AGL.

To the extent that Petitioner ’s operations at any time and any location rely on the FAA’s “blanket

COA” for s UAS operations, Petitioner will operate its respective UA only at altitudes that do not

exce ed 200 feet AGL.

* Petitioner’s operation s of its UA will be such that each UA remains within the visual line of site (“ VLOS ”) of the pilot

- in

- command (“PIC”) at all times.

* Petitioner’s s UAS will be operated only by a PIC who holds at least a sport pil ot, recreational pilot, or private pilot airman certificate and either a corresponding airman medical

certificate or U.S. driver’s license.

* Petitioner’s s UAS operations will employ a visual observer (“VO”), who will be able to communicate orally with th e PIC at all times during operations.

* Petitioner’s s UAS will be maintained and inspected to ensure its condition furthers safe operation. Petitioner’s inspection process will include a pre

- flight inspection each time Petitioner wishes to operate the s U AS.

* Petitioner will not operate at night.

* Petitioner will operate within 5 nautical miles of an airport only with specific authority to do so.

* Petitioner’s s UAS is designed to return to a pre

- determined location if the device

loses communications or its GPS signal.

* Petitioner’s s UAS operations will be conducted only over private or controlled

access property (including public property) with permission from the property owner or other authorized representative.North Carolina State University (NGAT) Petition for Exemption Pursuant to Section 333 July 21, 2015 Page 5

Particularly in light of the 100+ h ours of s UAS flight experience that Petitioner and Petitioner’s PICs have obtained pursuant to s UAS flights performed under the COAs set forth in Exhibit B, Petitioner’s operation of s UAS under these conditions will be at least as safe and

controlled as the operations authorized in prior Section 333 Exemption grants ; in actuality, Petitioner’s operations are likely to constitute the “gold standard” for safe, controlled s UAS operations. Indeed, one need look no further than Petitioner’s role in ASSURE as pro ject leader

for the control and communication research activities of the UAS Center of Excellence to understand Petitioner’s qualifications and dedication to safe, intelligent, prudent operations.
Moreover, Petitioner ’s raison d’etre demonstrates its u nassailable commitment to safety and to not posing a hazard or threat to other aircraft (manned or unmanned), public safety, or national security

.

Discussion of Specific FARs

Consistent with the growing number of Section 333 Exemption grants for aerial data

collection and other s UAS activities similar to those requested by Petitioner, here is a list of the

FAR sections from w hich Petition seeks exemption:

14 C

. F

. R

. § 61.23(a) & (c) 14 C.F.R. § 91.9(b)(2) 14 C

. F

. R

. § 91.405(a)

14 C

. F

. R

. § 61.101(e)(4) & (5) 14 C

. F

. R

. § 91.119(c) 14 C

. F

. R

. § 91.407(a)(1 )

14 C

. F

. R

. § 61.113(a) 14 C

. F

. R

. § 91.121 14 C

. F

. R

. § 91.409(a)(1) & (2)

14 C

. F

. R

. § 61.315(a) 14 C

. F

. R

. § 91.151(a)(1) 14 C

. F

. R

. § 91.417(a) & (b)

14 C

. F

. R

. § 91.7(a)

In addition to the above

- referenced FAR provisions, Petitioner understands that the FAA is likely to impose additional conditions, limitations, restrictions, and requirements on Petitioner’s UAS operations pursuant to several other FARs, including , for example, certai n of Parts 21 5 and 27 of Title 14 of the Code of Federal Regulations; FAR Section 45.23(b); FAR Section 27(a); FAR Section 91.103(b)(2); FAR Section 91.109; and FAR Section 91.203(a) & (b). However, because none of the Section 333 Exemption grants previou sly issued by the FAA appear to have “waived,”

5 With respect to the airworthiness requirements of Part 21 of the F AR, the FAA has previously acknowledged that relief is not necessary for the s UAS referenced in this Petition. As set forth in Exhibit C of this Petition, all of the s UAS proposed for use by Petitioner have been the subject of prior Section 333 Exemption grants, with respect to which the FAA has consistently stated as follows:

In accordance with the statutory criteria provided in Section 333 of Public Law

112

- 95 in reference to 49 U.S.C. § 44704, and in consideration of the size, weight, speed, and limite d operating area associated with the aircraft and its operation, the Secretary of Transportation has determined that this aircraft meets the conditions

of Section 333. T herefore, the FAA finds that relief from 14 CFR part 21, Certification procedures for p roducts and parts, Subpart H

—

Airworthiness Certificates , and any associated noise certification and testing requirements of part 36, is not necessary.

See, e.g., Regulatory Docket No. FAA

- 2014

- 036 , Exemption No. 11110A (Trimble Navigation Ltd.).North Carolina State University (NGAT) Petition for Exemption Pursuant to Section 333 July 21, 2015 Page 6

as a legal matter, these additional FAR provisions, the instant Petition does not seek waiver of and

does not discuss these additional F ARs. Because the instant Petition seeks to invoke the FAA’s “summary process” for Section 333 Exemption grants based on the fact that it is substantially similar to numerous previously

- issued Section 333 Exemption grants, discussion of these additional provis ions should not be necessary. Nevertheless, s hould the FAA Staff determine that an exposition by Petitioner is necessary with respect to these additional FARs, Petitioner respectfully requests that the FAA Staff contact the undersigned as soon as possible so that Petitioner has an opportunity to promptly provide such further information.

14 C.F.R. § 61.23(a) and (c) This FAR requires that persons holding certain airman certificates also hold a certain class of

medical certificate. Consistent with other S ection 333 Exemption grants, Petitioner requests that the person operating Petitioner’s s UAS be permitted to hold a valid driver’s license issued by one of the fifty United States or the District of Columbia or the corresponding medical certificate require d by the airman certificate held by such operator. Moreover, all of Petitioner’s current PICs hold a current medical certificate that corresponds to their airman certificate (i.e., none of Petitioner’s current operators holds less than a private pilot cer tificate).

14 C.F.R. §§ 61.101(e)(4) & (5), 61.113(a) , 61.315(a) These FARs, respectively, limit holders of recreational pilot certificates, private pilot certificates

, and sport pilot certificates to noncommercial operations. The prohibition on commerci al activities for operators holding these airman certificates are logical for manned aircraft. For unmanned aircraft, however, the safety issues inherent in commercial activities are vastly different, as there are no passengers, there is no cargo, and the environment is controlled in an appropriate manner. Thus, consistent with other Section 333 Exemption grants, Petitioner requests that persons operating Petitioner’s s UAS be permitted to use the s UAS for the purpose of engaging in activities

that either are noncommercial or are not noncommercial

.

14 C.F.R. § 91.7(a)

This FAR prohibits the operation of an aircraft “unless it is in an airworthy condition

. ” Consistent with other Section 333 Exemption grants, Petitioner seeks permission to operate its unmanned aircraft without an airworthiness certificate, and Petitioner will continue to engage in pre

- flight inspections to ensure safe operation is possible each time Petitioner wishes to engage in UAS operations

.

14 C.F.R. § 91.9(b)(2) This FAR require s that a flight manual be maintained in the aircraft. Compliance with this FAR

is im practicable in the context of s UAS as there is no “cabin” or cockpit. Consistent with other Section 333 Exemption grants, Petitioner seeks permission to maintain the manu facturer’s manual on the ground with the operator

.North Carolina State University (NGAT) Petition for Exemption Pursuant to Section 333 July 21, 2015 Page 7

14 C.F.R. § 91.119(c) This FAR prohibits the operation of aircraft below altitudes of 500 feet above the surface (except over open water or sparsely populated areas) other than during takeoff or landing. Petitioner proposes to operate its s UAS at altitudes of less than 400 fee t above the surface, and requests permission to so, consistent with other Section 333 Exemption grants. Moreover, as indicated above, Petitioner envisions that many, if not most, of its operations will occur pursuant to the

blanket COA at altitudes not to exceed 200 feet above the surface.

14 C.F.R. § 91.121 This FAR requires the use of an altimeter during flight for purposes of maintaining the cruising altitude or flight level of the aircraft. Petitioner will not make use of an altimeter in connection

with its s UAS operations. Instead, Petitioner’s s UAS will either rely on the use of GPS, internal gyroscope, or operator adjustments to maintain the unmanned aircraft’s altitude or flight level

. Consistent with other Section 333 Exemption grants, Petitio ner seeks a waiver of the requirement relating to altimeter use or, in the alternative, a declaration that use of GPS would satisfy the altimeter requirements.

14 C.F.R. § 151(a)(1) This FAR restricts persons from beginning a flight in an airplane under V FR conditions unless

there is a certain amount of fuel in the aircraft. This FAR is inapplicable to Petitioner’s operations

insofar as Petitioner’s s UAS do not use “fuel” per se but instead rely on electrical power generated by small, protected batteries or battery packs. Accordingly, Petitioner proposes to deviate from this FAR insofar as Petitioner, consistent with other Section 333 Exemption grants, will not begin a flight unless there is sufficient power available for the s UAS operation to continue at least 5 minutes beyond the intended duration of the flight.

14 C.F.R. §§ 91.405(a); 91.407(a)(1); 91.409(a)(1) & (2); 91.417(a) & (b)

The se FARs govern, inter alia, certain aircraft inspections, the return of aircraft to serv ice after maintenance, and certain maintenance record keeping and retention. Consistent with other Section 333 Exemption grants, Petitioner proposes to achieve an equivalent level of safety by engaging in

pre

- flight inspections of its s UAS and any mainten ance that is recommended by the manufacturer

of the s UAS

.

Conclusion

Through this Petition, filed pursuant to Section 333, Petitioner seeks an exemption from the following FA Rs: 14 C

. F

. R

. § 61.23(a) and (c) ; 14 C

. F

. R

. § 61.101(e)(4) and (5) ; 14 C

. F

. R

. § 61.113(a) ; 14 C

. F

. R

. § 6 1.315(a) ; 14 C

. F

. R

. § 91.7(a) ; 14 C.F.R. § 91.9(b)(2); 14 C

. F

. R

. § 91.119(c) ; 14 C

. F

. R

. § 91.121 ; 14 C

. F

. R

. § 91.151(a)(1) ; 14 C

. F

. R

. § 91.405(a) ; 14 C

. F

. R

. § 91.407(a)(1) ; 14 C

. F

. R

. § 91.409(a)(1) and (2) ; 14 C

. F

. R

. § 91.417(a) and (b)

.North Carolina State University (NGAT) Petition for Exemption Pursuant to Section 333 July 21, 2015 Page 8

Grant of this Petition and Section 333 E xemption , including waiver of the above

- referenced

FARs

, will permit Petitioner to operate its s UAS in furtherance of its strategic mission and goals, including the ability to offer UAS services in furtherance of public and private UAS opportunities throughout the State of North Carolina , including inspections, monitoring , photography, and other

data

- gathering and physical application activit ies

. The grant will result in a reduction of risk and concomitant enhancement of safety as compared to the use of manned aircraft (such as a helicopter) for such activities ; moreover, for many such activities, use of manned aircraft is not possible or pra cticable

. Unlike manned aircraft, Petitioner’s UAS operations will not use combustible fuel, and Petitioner’s unmanned aircraft are smaller, quieter, lighter, safer, and more

cost

- effective than manned aircraft employed for similar purposes. Moreover, Pe titioner’s s UAS operations will be in controlled airspace, away from people, and in a safe environment. Accordingly, it is believed that such s UAS operations will be at least as safe

— and, given Petitioner’s experience and qualifications, safer

— than manned aircraft operations used for the

same purposes.

We respectfully re quest that the FAA grant this Section 333 Exemption Petition using the “summary grant” procedure.

Should any questions arise during the course of your consideration of this Petition, ki ndly contact the undersigned

.

Respectfully submitted,

Kyle Snyder, NGAT Program DirectorExhibit A

NGAT Summary

The NextGen Air Transportation (NGAT) Program at NC State University began with the charter of developing the Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) ecosystem for North Carolina in May of 2012. Although UAS are just a small part of the larger air transportation modernization activities under development nationwide, this is the FAA’s “NextGen Program”, the integration of UAS is representative of the larger airspace and aviation technology transformation happening globally. The NCDOT Division of Aviation’s investment into NGAT in 2012 to position North Carolina as a UAS integration leader was bold and timely. The UAS landscape has dramatically changed since 2012 with the emergence of consumer

- grade systems creating a demand for daily commercial uses almost overnight. The FAA has also released their intentions for a broad rule that will

reg ulate non

- hobby operations, while also providing commercial exemptions and new structures for allowing access to more users operating in the National Airspace System (NAS). [It is expected] Sometime in the next 18 months, the FAA will open the skies to com mercial and civilian users under a new regulatory structure that includes licensing of UAS operators that have demonstration aeronautical knowledge that are flying registered aircraft.

North Carolina is now recognized as a state that embraced this comin g change and other states are wanting to follow our model of deliberately managed integration of UAS that includes (1) development of standard operating procedures for ensuring safety of operations; (2) a formal, yet reasonable regulatory code; (3) a commo n knowledge source for discussing the topic of UAS; and (4) a model for supporting workforce development across all disciplines that the industry is needing. By adopting this strategy of statewide management and integration of UAS, North Carolina (throug h the NGAT office at NC State University ) was positioned as a core team member of the ASSURE Alliance that was recently selected for the FAA’s UAS Center of Excellence for research for at least the next 5 years. NGAT is currently the recognized resource i n the state for UAS information, fielding questions regarding interest in establishing UAS production facilities in North Carolina, access to NGAT managed UAS testing and research facilities, establishment of UAS flight capabilities inside existing NC busi nesses and government agencies, and career opportunities in the UAS industry. By providing a single resource for UAS information, even though NGAT is working behind the scenes with all of the stakeholders in the state that are critical to success, the sta te has made a powerful leadership statement and demonstrated commitment that UAS are embraced in North Carolina for that are ready to follow the protocols.

Highlights :

• 6 full time staff, 5 part time students

• Only state agency currently operating UAS under FAA and S tate CIO approval.

• Weekly flight operations at one of 6 approved research COA locations in the state

• 45 0+ flights, 100 + hours flight time since March 21, 2013 using a dozen different

aircraft.

• Core team member of ASSURE FAA UAS Center of Exc ellence research team.

• Helped recruit Precision Hawk to base headquarters in Raleigh. They are an NGAT strategic partner collaborating on ASSURE and Pathfinder project research initiatives.Exhibit B

Petitioner’s Approved COAs

COA File No. NC Location Covered by

COA UAV Expiration

Date

2013

- ESA

- 65 Butner Vireo 9/18/15

2014

- ESA

- 123 Lake Wheeler Precison Hawk Lancaster III 11/13/16

2014

- ESA

- 27 Butner Precison Hawk Lancaster III 4/22/16

2014

- ESA

- 101 Green Swamp Vireo 9/18/16

2013

- ESA

- 69 Caratoke Vireo 9/25/15

2014

- ESA

- 17 Hyde County Yamaha Rmax 6/8/16

2014

- ESA

- 3 Caratoke T

- 20 4/8/16

2014

- ESA

- 56 Butner Prioria Mav e ric 6/8/16

2015

- ESA

- 114 Lake Wheeler Vireo 3/15/17

2014

- ESA

- 93 Vernon James Vireo 9/18/16Exhibit C

Petitioner’s UAS and Corresponding FAA Section 333 Exemption Grants

UAS Description Prior FAA Section 333 Exemption Grant No. DJI Inspire No s . 11804 , 11733, 11693

DJI Phantom 2 Nos. 11817, 11809, 11157 Leica Geosystems Aibot X6 Nos. 11356, 11545 , 11216

Trimble UX5 Nos. 11806, 11666 , 11110A Sensefly eBee Nos. 11136, 11797, 11754

PrecisionHawk Lancaster III No. 11711

Prioria Maveric No. 11593

Sentera Vireo pending