720 S. Colorado Blvd

Penthouse North

Denver, CO 80246

Tel: +1 (334) 578 2900

Fax: +1 (334) 460 8111

www.unmannedexperts.com

E-Mail: operations@unmannedexperts.com

January 15, 2015

U.S. Department of Transportation

Docket Management System

1200 New Jersey Ave., SE

Washington, DC 20590

Dear Sir or Madam:

Pursuant to Section 333 of the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012 (herein referred to as 

Reform Act) and 14 CFR Part 11, Unmanned Experts, a small Unmanned Aircraft System (sUAS) 

consultancy and training firm, hereby applies for an exemption from the listed Federal Aviation 

Regulations (FARs) to allow commercial operation of sUAS for precision aerial surveying, 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.

As detailed in this document and the attached Altavian Nova F6500 Operator Manual (herein referred 

to as Operator Manual), the requested exemption would permit the operation of sUAS under controlled 

conditions in airspace that is 1) limited, 2) predetermined, 3) controlled as to access and 4) would 

provide safety enhancements to the already best practices safety protocols followed by Unmanned 

Experts. Approval of this exemption would thereby enhance safety and fulfill the Secretary of 

Transportation’s responsibilities to “...establish requirements for the safe operation of such aircraft 

systems in the national airspace system.” Section 333(c) Reform Act.

The name and address of the applicant is:

Unmanned Experts, Inc.

Drew A. Jurkofsky

720 S. Colorado Boulevard, Penthouse North

Denver, CO 80246

970-237-1902

drew.j@unmannedexperts.com

Regulations from which the exemption is requested:

14 CFR Part 21

14 CFR 45.23(b)

14 CFR 61.113(a) & (b)

14 CFR 91.7(a)

14 CFR 91.9(b)(2)

14 CFR 91.103
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14 CFR 91.109

14 CFR 91.119

14 CFR 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)

AUTHORITY FOR EXEMPTIONS

The Federal Aviation Act expressly grants the FAA authority to issue exemptions. This statutory 

authority includes exempting civil aircraft, as the term is defined under §40101 of the Act, including 

sUASs, from the requirement that all civil aircraft must have a current airworthiness certificate.

The Administrator may grant an exemption from a requirement of a regulation prescribed under 

subsection (a) or (b) of this section or any sections §44702-44716 of this title if the Administrator 

finds the exemption in the public interest. 49 USC §44701(f). See also 49 USC §44711(a); 49 USC 

§44704; 14 CFR 91.203(a)(1).

Section 333(b) of the Reform Act assist the Secretary in determining whether sUASs may operate in 

the national airspace system without creating a hazard to the user, the public, or a threat to national 

security. In making this determination, the Secretary must consider:

 The sUAS’ size, weight, speed and operational capability;

 Whether the sUAS operates within the visual line of sight of the operator;

 Whether the sUAS operates outside of highly populated areas and away from close proximity 

to airports.

Reform Act 333(a). If the Secretary determines that a sUAS “may operate safely in the national 

airspace system, the Secretary shall establish requirements for the safe operation of such aircraft in the 

national airspace system.” Id. 333(c).

The Altavian Nova F6500 is a fixed-wing aircraft weighing 16.5 pounds, including payload. It has the 

ability to operate under normal conditions at a speed of no more than 70 miles per hour. It is equipped 

with a single propeller driven by an electric motor powered by a lithium polymer battery and has a 

wingspan of 108 inches and a length of 67 inches. The sUAS will operate only in the pilot’s or visual 

observer’s visual line of sight at all times. Such operations will insure that the sUAS will “not create a 

hazard to users of the national airspace system or the public.” Reform Act Section 333(b).

Given the small size of the sUAS involved and the restricted environment within which they will 

operate, our application falls squarely within the zone of safety (an equivalent level of safety) in which 

Congress envisioned that the FAA must, by exemption, allow commercial operations of sUASs to 

commence immediately. Also due to the small size of the UAS and the low altitudes in which our 

sUAS will operate, approval of the application presents no national security issue.
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DESCRIPTION OF SPECIFIC REGULATIONS

14 CFR Part 21, Subpart H: Airworthiness certificates

Subpart H, establishes the procedural requirements for the issuance of airworthiness certificates as 

required by FAR §91.203(a)(1). Given the size and limited operating area associated with the aircraft 

to be utilized by Unmanned Experts, an exemption from Part 21 Subpart H meets the requirements of 

an equivalent level of safety under Part 11 and Section 333 of the Reform Act. The Federal Aviation 

Act (49 USC §44701(f)) and Section 333 of the Reform Act both authorize the FAA to exempt aircraft 

from the requirement for an airworthiness certificate, upon consideration of the size, weight, speed, 

operational capability and proximity to airports and populated areas of the particular sUAS. In all 

cases, an analysis of these criteria demonstrates that the sUAS operated without an airworthiness 

certificate, in the restricted environment and under the conditions proposed, will be at least as safe, or 

safer, than a conventional aircraft operating with an airworthiness certificate without the restrictions 

and conditions proposed.

14 CFR 45.23(b): Marking of the aircraft

This regulation requires that certain experimental, provisionally certified aircraft, or light-sport 

category aircraft to be marked with letters between 2 inches and 6 inches high “limited”, “restricted,” 

“light-sport,” “experimental,” or “provisional,” near each entrance to a cabin, cockpit or pilot station.

Even though the UAS will have no airworthiness certificate, an exemption may be needed as the sUAS 

will have no entrance to the cabin, cockpit or pilot station on which the word “Experimental” can be 

placed. Given the size of the sUAS, 2 inch lettering will be impossible. Unmanned Experts will mark 

the sUAS with the organization’s name and address. An insurance barcode attached to the aircraft will 

also be linked to Unmanned Experts. If applicable, the word “Restricted” will be displayed on the 

fuselage between the leading edge of the wing and the nose section of the Nova F6500.

14 CFR 61.113(a) & (b): Private pilot privileges and limitations: Pilot in command

Sections 61.113(a) and (b) limit private pilots to non-commercial operations. Because the sUAS will 

not carry a pilot or passengers, the proposed operations can achieve the equivalent level of safety of 

current operations by requiring the pilot operating the aircraft to have completed a UAS flight training 

course of 100 hours before flying a sUAS. Unlike a conventional aircraft that carries the pilot and 

passengers, the sUAS is remotely controlled with no living thing or cargo on board. The area of 

operation is controlled and restricted, and all flights are planned and coordinated in advance as set 

forth in the Operator Manual. The risks associated with the operation of the small UAS are so 

diminished from the level of risk associated with commercial operations contemplated by Part 61 

when drafted, that allowing operations of the sUAS as requested exceeds the present level of safety 

achieved by 14 CFR 61.113(a) and (b).

14 CFR 91.7(a): Civil aircraft airworthiness

The regulation requires that no person may operate a civil aircraft unless it is in airworthy condition. 

As there will be no airworthiness certificate issued for the aircraft, should this exemption be granted, 

no FAA regulatory standard will exist for determining airworthiness. Given the size of the aircraft and 

the requirements contained in the Operator Manual for maintenance and use of safety checklists prior 

to each flight an equivalent level of safety will be provided.
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14 CFR 91.9(b)(2): Civil aircraft flight manual, marking and placard requirements

The sUAS, given its size and configuration has no ability or place to carry such a flight manual on the 

aircraft, not only because there is no pilot on board, but because there is no room or capacity to carry 

such an item on the aircraft.

The equivalent level of safety will be maintained by keeping the User Manual at the ground control 

point where the pilot flying the sUAS will have immediate access to it.

14 CFR 91.103: Preflight action

This regulation requires each pilot in command take certain actions before flight to ensure the safety of 

flight. An exemption is needed from this requirement as the pilot will take separate preflight actions, 

including checking for weather conditions, checking flight battery requirements, checking takeoff and 

landing distances, and all other actions in the Operator Manual and safety checklists. These actions 

will provide an equivalent level of safety.

14 CFR 91.109: Flight instruction

Section 91.103 provides that no person may operate a civil aircraft (except a manned free balloon) that 

is being used for flight instruction unless that aircraft has fully functioning dual controls.

By design, sUASs and remotely piloted aircraft do not have fully functional dual controls. Flight 

control is accomplished through the use of a control box that communicates with the aircraft via radio 

communications. The equivalent level of safety is provided by the fact that neither a pilot nor 

passengers will be carried in the aircraft, the ability to control the sUAS via radio signals from the 

controller and by the size and speed of the aircraft.

14 CFR 91.119: Minimum safe altitudes

Section 91.119 establishes safe altitudes for operation of civil aircraft. The sUAS will never operate at 

altitude higher than 400 AGL and all operations will occur during daylight hours under Visual

Meteorological Conditions (VMC) only.

The equivalent level of safety will be achieved given the size, weight and speed of the sUAS as well as 

the location where it is operated. No flight will be taken without the permission of the property owner 

or local officials. Because advance notice to the property owner and any onsite personnel, as well as 

the precautions outlined below, all affected individuals will be aware of the planned flight operations.

Flight operations will be conducted at least 500 feet from all non-participating persons (persons other 

than the pilot in command (PIC) or visual observer (VO)), vessels, vehicles and structures, unless:

1. Barriers or structures are present that sufficiently protect non-participating persons from 

debris in the event of an accident. The PIC will ensure that non-participating persons remain 

under such protection. If a situation arises where non-participating persons leave such 

protection and are within 500 feet of the sUAS, flight operations will cease immediately

and/or;
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2. The aircraft is operated near vessels, vehicles or structures where the land 

owner/controller has granted permission and the PIC has made a safety assessment of

the risk of operating closer to those objects and;

3. Operations near the PIC or VO do not present an undue hazard to the PIC or VO, per 14 

CFR 91.119(a).

The sUAS will remain within visual line of sight of the PIC or VO. Flight operations will be 

conducted at least 5 miles from an airport and at least 3 miles from any city or densely 

populated area. The PIC or VO will provide notification to the local Flight Standards District 

Office and airport controller of all operations within 5 miles of an airport. The FAA will have 

advance notice of all operations through the filing of notices-to-airmen.

Compared to flight operations with aircraft or rotorcraft weighing far more than the sUAS 

proposed herein and carrying flammable fuel, any risk associated with our operations is far less 

than those presently presented with helicopters and other conventional aircraft operating at or 

below 500 feet AGL. In addition, the low-altitude operations of the sUAS will ensure 

separation between these UAS operations and the operations of conventional aircraft that must 

comply with Section 91.119.

14 CFR 91.121: Altimeter Settings

This regulation requires each person operating the aircraft to maintain cruising altitude by 

reference to an altimeter that is set “...to the elevation of the departure airport or an appropriate 

altimeter setting available before departure.” As the sUAS may not have a barometric 

altimeter, but instead a GPS altitude read out, an exemption may be needed. An equivalent 

level of safety will be achieved by the PIC confirming the altitude of the launch site shown on 

the GPS altitude indicator before flight.

14 CFR 91.151(a): Fuel requirements for flight in VFR conditions

Section 91.151(a) outlines fuel requirements for beginning a flight in VFR conditions. Our 

sUAS is limited to operations in controlled environments and has a limited flight time which 

require an exemption from 14 CFR 91.151(a).

The battery powering the sUAS provides approximately 90 minutes of powered flight. To meet 

the 30 minute reserve requirement in 14 CFR 91.151, sUAS flights would be limited to 

approximately 60 minutes in length. Given the limitations on the sUAS’s proposed flight area 

and the location of its proposed operations within a predetermined area, a longer time frame for 

flight in daylight VFR conditions is reasonable.

An equivalent level of safety can be achieved by limiting flights to 70 minutes, or enough 

battery reserve to ensure that the sUAS lands at the ground station with at least 20% of battery 

power (as determined by the onboard monitoring system and the PIC), whichever happens first. 

This restriction would be more than adequate to return the sUAS to its planned landing zone 

from anywhere in its limited operating area.
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14 CFR 91.203(a) & (b): Carrying civil aircraft certification and registration

The sUAS has no cabin, cockpit or pilot station and is operated without an onboard pilot. 

Therefore, there is no ability or place to carry certification and registration documents or to 

display them on the sUAS.

An equivalent level of safety will be achieved by keeping these documents at the ground 

control point where the pilot flying the sUAS will have immediate access to them, to the extent 

they are applicable to the sUAS.

14 CFR 91.405(a); 407(a)(1); 409(a)(2); 417(a) & (b): Maintenance inspections

These regulations require that an aircraft operator or owner “shall have that aircraft inspected as 

prescribed in subpart E of this part and shall between required inspections, except as provided 

in paragraph (c) of this section, have discrepancies repaired as prescribed in part 43 of this 

chapter...,” and others shall inspect or maintain the aircraft in compliance with Part 43.

Given that these sections and Part 43 apply only to aircraft with an airworthiness certificate, 

these sections will not apply to Unmanned Experts. Maintenance will be accomplished by the 

operator pursuant to the Operator Manual. An equivalent level of safety will be achieved 

because these sUASs are very limited in size and will carry a small payload and operate only in 

restricted areas for limited periods of time. If mechanical issues arise, the sUAS can land 

immediately and will be operating from no higher than 400 feet AGL. As provided in the 

Operator Manual, the operator will ensure that the sUAS is in working order prior to initiating 

flight, perform required maintenance and keep a log of any maintenance performed. Moreover, 

the operator is the person most familiar with the aircraft and best suited to maintain the aircraft 

in an airworthy condition to provide the equivalent level of safety.

PUBLIC INTEREST

Approval of exemptions allowing commercial operations of sUASs for precision aerial surveys 

enhances safety while reducing risk. Manned aircraft monitoring and surveying creates a 

greater risk because the craft are much larger, have combustible fuel, and carry an onboard 

human pilot. In contrast, a sUAS weighing 16.5 pounds and powered by batteries eliminates 

virtually all of that risk given the reduced mass and lack of combustible fuel carried on board. 

The sUAS will carry no passengers or crew and, therefore, will not expose them to the risks 

associated with manned aircraft flights.

Conducting aerial surveys with the Altavian Nova F6500, instead of manned aircraft, will 

greatly benefit the public by drastically reducing the levels of air and noise pollution generated 

during traditional aerial survey flight operations. By using battery power and an electric motor, 

the Nova F6500 produces no air pollution and is a viable, environmentally conscious alternative 

to the cabin class, six cylinder internal combustion twin engine aircraft that are typically 

utilized for aerial surveys, while burning approximately 20-30 gallons per hour of leaded 
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aviation fuel. The Nova F6500, while reducing the carbon footprint of aerial surveys, also 

reduces noise pollution as the sUAS is propelled by battery powered electric motor rather than 

an internal combustion engine.

EQUIVALENT LEVEL OF SAFETY

Unmanned Experts proposes that the exemption requested herein apply to civil aircraft that 

have the characteristics and that operate within the limitations listed herein. These limitations 

provide for at least an equivalent or even higher level of safety to operations under the current 

regulatory structure because the proposed operations represent a safety enhancement to the 

already safe protocols followed by aerial survey operations conducted with helicopters and 

other conventional aircraft.

Unmanned Experts will be bound by the following limitations when conducting its sUAS 

operations under an FAA issued exemption:

1. The sUAS will weigh less than 16.5 pounds.

2. Flights will be operated within line of sight of a pilot and/or observer.

3. Maximum total flight time for each operational flight will be 70 minutes. Flights will be 

terminated at 20% battery power reserve should that occur prior to the 70 minute limit.

4. Flights will be operated at an altitude of no more than 400 feet AGL.

5. Flight operations will be conducted 5 miles from an airport and at least 3 miles from any 

city or densely populated area, which are depicted in yellow on VFR sectional charts.

6. Flight operations within 5 miles of an airport require notification and approval from the 

local Flight Standards District Office and airport controller.

7. Flight operations will occur during daylight hours and under visual meteorological 

conditions only.

8. The FAA will have advance notice of all operations through the filing of notices-toairmen.

9. Minimum crew for each operation will consist of the sUAS pilot and visual observer.

10. The sUAS pilot will be an FAA licensed airman with at least a private pilot’s certificate 

and third class medical.

11. The pilot and visual observer will have been trained in the operation of the sUAS.

12. The pilot and visual observer will at all times be able to communicate by voice and/or 

text.

13. Written and/or oral permission from the relevant property holders will be obtained.

14. Flight operations will be conducted at least 500 feet from all non-participating persons, 

vessels, vehicles and structures unless:

a. Barriers or structures are present that sufficiently protect non-participating persons 

from debris in the event of an accident. The pilot will ensure that non-participating

persons remain under such protection. If a situation arises where non-participating

persons leave such protection and are within 500 feet of the sUAS, flight operations 

will cease immediately and/or;
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b. The aircraft is operated near vessels, vehicles or structures where the land 

owner/controller has granted permission and the PIC has made a safety 

assessment of the risk of operating closer to those objects and;

c. Operations near the pilot or visual observer do not present an undue hazard to 

the pilot or visual observer.

15. If the sUAS loses communication or loses its GPS signal, the sUAS will have the 

capability to return to a safe, pre-determined location and land.

16. The sUAS will have the capability to abort flight in case of unpredicted obstacles or 

emergencies.

PRIVACY

All flights will occur over private or controlled access property with the property owner’s prior 

consent and knowledge. Images taken will be of individuals who have also consented to being 

filmed or otherwise have agreed to be in the area where aerial photography will take place.

Federal Register Summary

Mr. Drew A. Jurkofsky, Aerial Photogrammetrist and Mapping Specialist, Unmanned Experts, 

Inc., 720 S. Colorado Boulevard, Penthouse North, Denver, Colorado 80246, petitioned the 

FAA on behalf of Unmanned Experts, Inc. (Unmanned Experts) for an exemption from part 21 

and §§ 45.23(b), 61.113(a) and (b), 91.7(a), 91.9(b)(2), 91.103, 91.109, 91.119, 91.121, 

91.151(a), 91.203(a) and (b), 91.405(a), 407(a)(1), 409(a)(2), 417(a) and (b) of Title 14, Code 

of the Federal Regulations (14 CFR). The exemption would allow commercial operation of 

Altavian Nova F6500 small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (sUASs) for precision aerial surveys.

*******

Satisfaction of the criteria provided in Section 333 of the Reform Act of 2012 – size, weight, 

speed, operating capabilities, proximity to airports and populated areas and operation within 

visual line of sight and national security – provide more than adequate justification for the grant 

of the requested exemptions allowing commercial operation of Unmanned Experts’ sUAS for 

precision aerial surveys.

Sincerely,

Drew A. Jurkofsky

Unmanned Experts, Inc.

Aerial Photogrammetrist and Mapping Specialist