Nathan Pool 

102 Fairway DR. 

Enterprise, AL, 36330 

(904) 607-1568 

Nathanpool99@gmail.com 

Summary: 

The Petitioner is seeking exemption for the purpose of aerial videography/

photography, data collection, and real estate use. 

Exemption: 

An exemption from 91.7(a), 91.119, 91.121, 91.151(a), 91.405(a), 91.407(a)(1), 

91.409(a)(2) and 91.417(a) and (b) of Title 14, Code of Federal Regulations (14 CFR) as was 

granted to Mr. Wade Bell in Exemption No. 11409. 

The UAS 

1. DJI PHANTOM 3 

2. Using an advanced array of sensors drone will remain aloft and in a safe, stable 

position. 

3. 1280 Grams 

4. Controller utilizes 2.400 GHz-2.483 GHz ( Complies with FCC and CE standards) 

Flight limitations 

1. Pre-Flight Check required for every flight. 

2. PIC will be responsible for ensuring any people nearby are aware of the UAS operation. 

3. Horizontal speed shall not exceed 16 M/s 

4. Altitude shall not exceed 100 Meters (333 Feet) 

5. Flight shall not take place over roadways, private property (without prior consent), or 

any other restricted areas or other areas where there significant potential danger to 

the operator, bystanders, or private property. 

6. A spotter will be utilized at all times. 

7. UAS must be visible by unaided eye at all times, night flights will not be allowed. 
8. An Additional spotter will be used to identify any potentially dangerous situations 

(including but not limited to: group of people converging underneath UAS or 

approaching aircraft.) 

9. Operation will be at least 500 vertical feet from any clouds and 2000 horizontal feet. 

10. Operate at least 5 miles from any airport. 

11. Comply with all additional mandates set by the FAA and limitations set by 

manufacturer. 

12. Return and land with at least 25% of original battery remaining. 

13. Have a contingency plan in the event of an engine failure. 

Pre-Flight Check to Include 

1. Ensure UAS is in full operational condition (check all connections, ensure blades are 

secure) 

2. Ensure battery is fully charged and secured. 

3. Ensure controller is in full operational order. 

4. Check area for any potential hazards. 

5. Ensure there are no Airfields/Heliports within a 5 mile radius. 

PIC Requirements 

1. Must be at least 16, with an adult over 18 site at all times. 

2. Be able to maintain visual contact with UAS at all times. 

3. Must read all materials provided by DJI regarding safe use of drone prior to flight. 

4. Have an up to date FAA medical physical. 

5. Possess an FAA Pilot License & Have previous experience with rotary wing aircraft.
By granting this exemption I will be able to provide safe, low-cost aerial imaging services 

to local farmers, relators, or even photography studios. These images can help survey fields, 

identify potential dangers on property (ie: a roof that is too dangerous to walk on) or provide 

a unique perspective for weddings, family reunions, etc. I will ensure that my UAS is within 

safe operation guidelines at all times, and that I abide by all guidelines set by the FAA. 

The UAS, powered by batteries, is smaller, lighter and more maneuverable than larger 

aircraft running on traditional fuel, it operates at lower altitudes with no people on board and 

will thereby reduce current risk levels and thus enhance safety and diminish the likelihood of 

death or serious bodily injury. With a small payload and maximum flight time of only 18 

minutes, this is offers little or no risk to national security. 

Low level photos and video from several angles are far more effective than ground-based 

imagery for displaying the characteristics of large, complex properties with several buildings 

and large trees. The alternative could be to charter a full-sized helicopter for this purpose, 

which has proven more costly than many potential clients are able to afford. The benefits of 

reduced cost and improved quality of presentation from the UAS will be valuable to and 

benefit many buyers and sellers of real property and marine property. In the case of extreme 

sporting events, the UA will operate in remote locations where ground based video recording 

could potentially put the camera crew in harm’s way. The UAS is a safer way to capture these 

extreme sporting events. 

Additionally, we request that we be allowed to use our system to benefit first responders 

nearby who might require assistance, including fire fighters, the police, the sheriff, et al., 

while remaining subject to all limitations cited in this application as we do so. 

Sincerely, 

Nathan Pool 
14 CFR Part 21, Subpart H: Airworthiness Certificates 

This part establishes the procedures for the issuance of an airworthiness certificate. While 

the 

FAA continues to work to develop airworthiness standards for Unmanned Aerial Systems, 

we request an experimental certificate be issued for the ME System under either or both of 

the following provisions: 21.191 Experimental certificates. 

Experimental certificates are issued for the following purposes: 

(a) Research and development. Testing new aircraft design concepts, new aircraft 

equipment, new aircraft installations, new aircraft operating techniques, or new uses for 

aircraft. 

(b) Showing compliance with regulations. Conducting flight tests and other operations to 

show compliance with the airworthiness regulations including flights to show compliance for 

issuance of type and supplemental type certificates, flights to substantiate major design 

changes, and flights to show compliance with the function and reliability requirements of the 

regulations. 

Since the experimental certificate can be used for commercial purposes such as market 

surveys, sales demonstrations, and customer crew training, we would expect that an 

experimental certificate would permit our commercial purpose as well. 

The aircraft will not carry persons or property, will not carry fuel, and will only fly under 

strict operational requirements. Combined with the UA’s light weight, being constructed 

primarily of carbon fiber and plastic, we propose that the UA will be at least as safe, if not 

safer, than a conventionally certificated aircraft performing the same mission. 

If an experimental airworthiness certificate is not appropriate for this application, then 

we request an exemption of 14 CFR Part 21, Subpart H, and the requirement for an 

airworthiness certificate in general, citing the equivalent level of safety outlined in the 

previous paragraph. 
14 CFR 91.203(a) & (b) Civil aircraft: Certifications required. 

The regulation provides that an airworthiness certificate, with the registration number 

assigned to the aircraft and a registration certificate must be aboard the aircraft. 

Additionally, subparagraph 

(b) provides that the airworthiness certificate be "displayed at the cabin or cockpit 

entrance so that it is legible to passengers or crew." 

At a maximum gross weight of 6.5 pounds, the UA is too small to carry documentation, 

does not have an entrance, and is not capable of carrying passengers or crew. To obtain an 

equivalent level of safety and meet the intent of 91.203, we propose that documents deemed 

appropriate for this aircraft by the FAA will be co-located with the crew at the ground control 

station and available for inspection upon request. In order to identify the aircraft, we propose 

that the information found on airworthiness and registration certificates be permanently 

affixed to the aircraft via placard containing the following information plus the word 

“EXPERIMENTAL” to satisfy the requirement of 14 CFR 45.23, which follows immediately after 

the proposed placard description below:14 CFR 45.23 Display of marks; general and 45.29 Size 

of marks. 

These regulations provide that each aircraft must display "N" and the aircraft's registration 

number in letters at least 3 inches high. Additionally, the aircraft must display the word 

"EXPERIMENTAL" in letters at least 2 inches high near the entrance to the cabin, cockpit, 

or pilot station. The UA does not have an entrance in which the word "EXPERIMENTAL" can be 

placed, and may not have a registration number assigned to it by the FAA. 

We propose to achieve an equivalent level of safety by including the word "EXPERIMENTAL" 

in the placard on the top of the aircraft, as shown above, where the PIC, VO and others in 

the vicinity of the aircraft while it is preparing for launch will be able to see the designation. 

Additionally, we feel that the permanent placard discussed in the previous paragraph will 

provide the aircraft's registration information at the ground station. Finally, we will display at 

the ground station a high contrast flag or banner that contains the words "Unmanned Aircraft 

Ground Station" in letters 3 inches high or greater. Since the aircraft will operate within 3/4 

NM of the ground station, the banner should be visible to anyone that observes the aircraft 

and chooses to investigate its point of origin. 

14 CFR 91.9 Civil aircraft flight manual, marking, and placard requirements. 

This regulation provides that no person may operate an aircraft unless a current, approved 

flight manual is in the aircraft. We assume that the intent of this requirement is to ensure 

that flight manual information is available to the aircrew while operating the aircraft. We 

request an exemption to this requirement since the aircraft is not only too small to carry 

documentation, the documentation would not be available to the crew during flight 

operations. 
To obtain an equivalent level of safety and meet the intent of 91.9, we propose that a 

current, approved UA Flight Manual (Appendix A) must be available to the crew at the ground 

station anytime the aircraft is in, or preparing for, flight. 

14 CFR 61.113 Private pilot privileges and limitations: Pilot in Command and 61.133 

Commercial pilot privileges and limitations. 

The regulation provides that no person that holds a private pilot certificate may act as 

pilot in command of an aircraft for compensation or hire. Subparagraph (b) allows a private 

pilot to act as pilot in command of an aircraft in connection with any business or employment 

if: (1) The flight is only incidental to that business or employment; and (2) The aircraft does 

not carry passengers or property for compensation or hire. 

Our proposed operations require that the PIC must either 

1. Hold a Commercial Pilot Certificate issued by the FAA, and have logged 25 hours of 

flight experience in this type of UA, or 

2. Meet the requirements of 8900.227 para 16(c)(2)(c) "Operations without a pilot 

certificate" in which the PIC is required to complete "FAA private pilot ground instruction" and 

pass "the FAA Private Pilot written examination." Since there are currently no means available 

for the pilot of a UAS to gain the experience in an equivalent category and class in order to 

apply for a commercial pilot's license, we propose to generate an equivalent level of safety by 

requiring our pilots to complete, at a minimum, FAA commercial pilot ground instruction and 

pass the FAA Commercial Pilot written examination in addition 

Appendix A Page 2 of 4 

to completing the private pilot requirements. Since the aircraft cannot carry passengers 

or property, we feel we meet the intent of 61.113 Subparagraph (b) even though the intent of 

this application is to conduct a business. 

14 CFR 91.109 Flight Instruction; Simulated instrument flight and certain flight tests 

The regulation states that "No person may operate a civil aircraft that is being used for 

flight instruction unless that aircraft has fully functioning dual controls." 

The ME System ground-based control station consists of a small hand-held radio 

transmitter and while it does not offer a second set of "controls", both the student and 

instructor can, and will, operate the single set of controls simultaneously. With both student 

and instructor having "hands-on" the controls during flight, we feel that this technique meets 

the intent 91.109 and provides an equivalent level of safety. 

14 CFR 91.119 Minimum safe altitudes: General. 

The regulation states that over sparsely populated areas the aircraft cannot be operated 

closer than 500 feet to any person, vessel, vehicle, or structure. Since the aircraft will be 

operating at a maximum of 400 feet AGL, we cannot comply with this requirement. 
In order to provide an equivalent level of safety we will only fly over private property with 

a size of at least two acres with the permission of the owner of the property flown over. The 

aircraft will not be operated over congested areas or over any open air assembly of persons. 

The property owner will be briefed on the expected route of flight and the associated risks to 

persons and property on the ground. The aircraft will be operated at a low altitude allowing, 

if a power unit fails, an emergency landing without undue hazard to persons or property on 

the surface. Therefore we maintain that due to the small size of the UA, the hazard to 

persons, vehicles and structures is minimal compared to manned aircraft, which should be 

considered in granting the exemption. 

14 CFR 91.121 Altimeter settings. 

The regulation requires that aircraft shall maintain cruising altitudes by reference to an 

altimeter setting available within 100 NM of the aircraft. 

The UA will always fly below 400 feet AGL and will not need to maintain cruising altitudes 

in order to prevent conflict with other aircraft. An Above Ground Level altimeter 

measurement above the takeoff point is transmitted via radio from the UA on-board computer 

to the display screen held by the PIC, providing a constantly updated AGL readout. 

14 CFR 91.151 Fuel requirements for flight in VFR conditions. 

The regulation provides that no person may begin a flight in an airplane under day-VFR 

conditions unless there is enough fuel to fly to the first point of intended landing and to fly 

after that for at least 30 minutes. We feel the intention of this paragraph is to provide an 

energy reserve as a safety buffer for delays to landing. The UA is battery operated and the 

maximum duration of flight from a single battery charge is 18 minutes with a 20% reserve. 

Since the aircraft will never fly more than 3⁄4 NM from the point of intended landing, a full 

battery charge at launch will ensure that we meet the reserve energy requirement of this 

paragraph. We request an exemption to the word "fuel" and ask for an equivalent 

interpretation with the word "energy". 

14 CFR Subpart E (91.401 - 91.417) - Maintenance, Preventive Maintenance, Alterations 

The regulation provides that the operator is primarily responsible for maintaining the 

aircraft in an airworthy condition, including compliance with part 39 and 43. Paragraphs 

91.407 and 91.409 require that the aircraft be "approved for return to service by a person 

authorized under 43.7" after maintenance and inspection. 

It is our intention that the PIC perform maintenance and inspection of the aircraft and "be 

authorized to approve the aircraft for return to service." As provided in the Pre-Flight 

Checklist in Appendix A, the PIC will ensure that the aircraft is in an airworthy condition prior 

to every flight and in addition conduct 

Appendix A Page 3 of 4 

detailed inspections after every two hours of flight. Maintenance performed by the PIC is 

limited to repairing small cracks, replacing a propeller, checking electrical connections and 

updating software and firmware for the on-board computer. All other maintenance will be 
performed by the manufacturer or their designated repair facility. The PIC will document 

work performed in accordance with 91.417. We feel that due to the size, construction, and 

simplicity of the aircraft, the PIC can ensure an equivalent level of safety. 

8900.227 Paragraph 16(c)(4) PIC Medical. and Paragraph 16(e)(1) Observer Medical. 

This policy provides that both the PIC and VO must have a valid FAA second-class medical 

certificate issued under part 67 in order to perform as a pilot or observer. The UA maximum 

gross weight is 6.5 pounds, it is constructed of carbon fiber and plastic and the PIC is not on 

board. Both the PIC and the VO are required to be in VLOS. Given the unlikely event that both 

the PIC and VO become medically incapacitated while the aircraft is in flight, the UA will 

return autonomously to the site of launching and land without crew intervention. 

Therefore, requiring the PIC and VO to meet the same medical requirements as a 

commercial pilot carrying passengers in a large aircraft is an unnecessary burden. 

We propose that the minimum medical requirements for the PIC and VO be vision 

corrected to 20/20 and a valid, state issued driver's license. The 20/20 vision requirement will 

ensure that the PIC and VO can see and avoid air traffic; a licensed driver is medically 

qualified to operate a much larger vehicle.