November 1 8 th , 2015

U.S. Department of Transportation Docket Management Sy stem 1200 New Jersey

Ave., SE Washington, DC 20590
RE: Exemption Request Section 333 of the FAA Reform Act of 2012

References:

 FAA Exemption No. 11138 to DOUGLAS TRUDEAU, Regulatory Docket No. FAA20140481

 FAA Exemption No. 11136 to ADVANCED AVIATION SOLUTIONS LLC, Regulatory

Docket No. FAA

–2014

– 0508

 FAA Exemption No. 11080 to FLYING CAM IN C, Regulatory Docket No. FAA

- 2014

- 0355

 FAA Exemption No. 12646 to MEASURE, Regulatory Docket No. FAA

–2015

– 1602
Dear Sir or Madam,
In accordance with the FAA’s Guidelines for Submitting a Petition for Exemption under S ection 333 of the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012, The Branch Group, Inc. (herein referred to as the petitioner) , request s exemption from the below listed sections of Title 14, Code of Federal Regulations , i n order to operate small unmanned aircraft sy stems (UAS) commerciall y in airspace regulated b y the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for the purposes of aeri al data acquisition , s o 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 b y the petitioner are drawn from references listed above.
As detailed in this document and the attached Appendix of UAS, the requested exemption would permit the operation of UAS under controlled conditions in the Unite d States. Approval of this exemption would thereb y enhance safety and fulfill the Secretary of Transportation’s responsibilities to “...establish requirements for the safe operation of such aircraft s ys tems in the national airspace s ys tem.” Section 333(c) Reform Act.
**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 UAS, from the requ irement 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). Seealso 49 USC §44711(a); 49 USC §44704; 14 CFR 91.203(a)(1). Section 333(b) of the Reform

Act assists the Secretary

in determining whether UAS may operate in the national air space sy stem without creating a hazard to the user, the public, or a threat to national security. In making this determination, the Secretary must consider:

• The UAS’ size, weight, speed and operational capability ;

• Whether the UAS operates within the visual line of sight of the operator;

• Whether the UAS operates outside of highl y populated areas and away from close proximity to airports.
Reform Act 333(a). If the Secretary determines that a UAS “may operate safel y in the national airspace sy stem, the Secretary shall establish requirements for the safe operation of such aircraft in the national airspace sy stem.” Id. 333(c).
**Regulations from which the exemption is requested:**

14 CFR Part 21 , Subpart H 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 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 91. 407(a)(1) 14 CFR 91. 409(a) (1) and (2) 14 CFR 91. 417(a) & (b)
**Name and address of the applicant:**

The Branch Group, Inc. J. William Karbach, CEO P.O. Box 40004 Roanoke, VA 24022 540

- 982

- 1678

**The FARs**
The petitioner seeks exemption from the above mentioned FARs for the following
reasons ;Part 21 , Subpart H;

Subpart H, establishes the procedural requirements for the issuance of airworthiness certificates as required b y FAR §91.203(a)(1). Given the size and limited operating area associated with the aircraft to be utilized by the petitioner , an exemption from Part 21 Subpart H meets the requirement s of an equivalent level of safet y 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 certificat e, upon consideration of the size, weight, speed, operational capability and proximity

to airports and populated areas of the particular UAS. In all cases, an anal ys is of these criteria demonstrates that the UAS operated without an airworthiness certificat e, 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.
45.23(b) ; 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 UAS will have no entrance to the cabin, cockpit or pilot station on which the word “Experimental” can be placed. Given the size of the UAS, 2 inch lettering may be impossible. The petitioner will mark the UAS as practicable.
61.113(a) & (b) ; As discussed in Exemption s 11138 , 11136 , 11080, and 12646 , the petitioner requests relief in order to facilitate the utilization of an experienced UAS operator with the addition of a trained observer. All pre

- flight inspection, maintenance and flight logs will be saved and made available to the FAA and Secretary of Transportation (SoT) for review; with the purpose of safel y integrating ci vil UAS operation in the National Airspace Sy stem. 91.7(a)
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 the petitioner contemplates operating, should this exemption be granted, no FAA regulatory standard will exist for determining airworthiness. Given the size of the aircraft and the operational restrictions put on the aircraft, an equivalent level of safety will be provid ed.
91.9(b)(2)
The UAS, 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 orcapacity

to carry such an item on the aircraft. The equivalent level of safety will be maintained by keeping the Operating Manuals at the ground control point where the pilot flying the UAS will have immediate access to it.

91.103
This regulation requires each pilot in command take certain actions bef ore 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 or fuel requirements, checking takeoff and landin g distances, and all other actions in the Operating Manual and safety checklists. These actions will provide an equivalent level of safety.

91.109
This regulation 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 full y functioning dual controls. By

design, UAS 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 b y the fact that neither a pilot nor passengers will be carried in the aircraft, the ability to control the UAS via radio signals from the controller and b y the size and speed of the aircraft

. 91.119(c)
As discussed in Exemption s 11138 , 11136 , 11080 , and 12646 , 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 ad ditional relief. The petitioner requests modification, waiver or exemption and clarification concerning the terms “congested areas” and “densel y populated”. The petitioner requests waiver for this condition to allow reasonable and responsible operations in populated areas if required. The petitioner will primarily operate the UAS between ground level and 400 feet AGL

. The UAS will be operated over designated properties with the consent of the owner/controller/authorized representative and while maintaining a safe distance from persons. The petitioner will compile flight data from the logs. This data may

assist the FAA in development of regulations for commercial operations in low

risk, controlled environments.

91.121
As discussed in Exemption s 11138 , 11136 , 11080, and 12646 , 91.121 is inapplicable since the UAS does not have an altimeter and instead utilizes electronic GPS with a sensor for altitude information.
91.151(a)As discussed in Exemption s 11138 , 11136 , 11080, and 12646 , prior relief has been granted for

manned aircraft to operate at less than the prescribed minimums . In addition, similar UAS specific relief has been granted in for day time, VFR conditions. The UAS provides battery power remaining in percent to the PI C. The UA batteries provide app roximately 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 PI C 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 day time VFR conditions was reasonable.
91.203(a) & (b) ;
The UAS 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 UAS. An equivalent level of safety will be achieved b y keeping these documents at the ground control point where the pilot flying the UAS will have immediate access to them, to the extent they are applicable to the UAS.
91.405(a); 91.407(a)(1); 91.409 (a)(1) & (2); 91.417(a) & (b)

As discussed in Exemption s 11138 , 11136 , 11080, and 12646 , 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 conditio ns and limitations specified, describing the requirements for maintenance, inspection, and recordkeeping, were sufficient to ensure that safety would not be adversely affected.

**The UAS**
Similar to Exemption 12646, the petitioner requests to operate a variet y of UAS. The UAS that the petitioner contemplates operating are listed in Attachments 1 and 2. Attachment 1 includes UAS previously

approved under various Exemptions, including 12646. Attachment 2 includes newer models of UAS from manufacturers whos e models have previousl y been approved. All of these UAS weigh less than 55 pounds and will operate at speeds less than 87 knots.

**Risk M**  **itigation**
The petitioner has revi ewed the Conditions and Li mitations section s of the referenced Exemptions 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 S airworthiness will be verifie d 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. These documents will be made available to the FAA and SoT to ass ist in future implementation ofsafety standards and regulations. The petitioner will only operate the UAS over designated properties with the owner /controller/authorized representative’s consent. Flight plans will be predetermined to limit the UASs flight time and limit safety concerns. The petitioner will take into account distance from persons and potential flight obstacles prior to operating the UAS. UAS operation will always be within VL OS of the PI C and the observer.

**Public I nterest**  Approval of ex emptions allowing commercial operations of UASs for aerial acquisition of data enhances safety while reducing risk. Manned aircraft in certain application such as pipeline monitoring create a greater risk because the aircraft are much larger and carry an o nboard human pilot. In contrast, a UAS weighing 55 pounds or less will carry no passengers or crew and, therefore, will not expose them to the risks associated with manned aircraft flights. In addition, additional streams of aerial data will allow large co mmercial entities to make decisions about how to best deploy ground resources and ensure the safety and cost

- effectiveness of their operations.
**Equivalent Level of Safety**
The petitioner proposes that the exemption requested herein appl y 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 and proposed regulatory

structure.
**Federal Register S ummary**  Petitioner: The Branch Group, Inc. 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) (1) and (2), 417(a) and (b) of Title 14, Code of the Federal Regulations (14 CFR). Description of Relief Sought: The petitioner is seeking an exemption to conduct commercial aerial data acquisition using unmanned aircraft s ys tems. Based upon the foregoing, the petitioner requests that the FAA grant it the n ecessary exemptions under Section 333 of the FAA Reform Act as requested herein to allow for commercial operations of UAS within the United States.

Sincerel y,
J. William Karbach , CEO The Branch Group, Inc. P.O. Box 40004 Roanoke, VA 24022 540

- 982

- 1678Attachment 1

1. 2AgEagle 2. 3D Robotics Aero

- M 3. 3D Robotics Iris 4. 3D Robotics Iris+ 5. 3D Robotics X8 6. 3DRobotics Fixed Wing 7. 3DRobotics Multirotor 8. 3DRobotics Quadrotor 9. 3DR Solo 10. 3DR Spektre 11. 3DRobotics Spektre Industrial Multi

- Rotor Aerial Vehicle 12. 3D Robotics Solo 13. 3DRobotics X8+ 14. 3D Robotics X8

- M 15. 3D Robotics Y6 16. Aerial Mob Heav y Lifter 17. Aerial Mob Light L ifter 18. Aerial Remote Mineral Detection Sy stem (ARMDS) 19. Aerialtronics Zenith with intergrated Airware s ys t em 20. Aerialtronics Altura Zenith ATX8 21. Aerigon 22. Aerobo 23. AeroCine Kopterworx Hammer X12 24. Aeromao AeroMapper 300 25. Aeromao Talon 26. Aeromao Aeromapper 300 27. Aeromao Aeromapper EV

- 2 28. AeroVironment Shrike 29. AeroVironment Puma 30. Aeronavics X4 Titanium 31. Aeryon Sky

Ranger 32. Aervonics Sky J ib frame with a DJ I A2 flight sy stem 33. Aero

- M 34. Aeryon Scout 35. Aeryon Sky

Ranger 36. AgEagle 37. AgEagle Robotic 38. AgScout 39. AgScout Mini 40. Agribotix Hornet Drone 41. Agribotix Enduro Quad42. AgriView VK Ranger EX

43. Aibot 44. Aibotix X

- 6 45. Air Rover AR

- 3000 46. AirCover QR

- 425s 47. AirRobot AR 180 48. AirRobot AR 100 49. AirRobot AR200 50. Air

- X 51. Align M690 52. Altavian Nova 53. Altavian Nova F6500 54. Altavian Nova R8400 55. Al tus X

- 4 56. Altus X

- 8 57. American Drones, LLC Eagle 58. Apprentice 59. Arch Aerial OCTO multi

- rotor UAS 60. Arris hexacoper 61. AR

- 960 Hex Rotor 62. AR

- 540 Quad Rotor 63. ARF

- MikroKopter OktoXL 64. ARF

- MikroKopter OktoXL+ 65. ArrowLite 66. AscTec Falcon 67. AscTec Falcon 8 68. Astraeus Aerial Cinema Sy stem V.3CS 69. Atlantic RC Aircraft LC04 70. Auburn Trimble UX5 71. Auburn War Eagle 72. Auburn Eas yS tar 73. Auburn 74. AV44 75. Bixler 3DR Plane 76. Blade 350QX 77. Bixler 2 78. Boomerang Carbon Fiber Frame (The Identified System) 79. Bormatec Maja UAV 80. BOSH Technologies Super Swiper 81. Bumblebee

- S 82. C

- Astral Bramor gEO 83. CarbonCore Octocopter 1000 84. Carbon Core Cortex Quadcopter 85. CCO w/Wkm M86. Chameleon Pro

87. CinesStar 88. Cinestar 6 89. Ci nestar X8 90. Cinestar 8 91. Cinestar 8 HL 92. Cinestar 8 Okto XL 93. Coaxial Quad Multirotor VAO1

- V1 94. Coaxial Quad Multirotor VAO2

- V2 95. CopelandRED LLC Delta Wing Aircraft 96. Cy

berQuad Maxi 97. DJIFlame Wheel F450 98. DJIFlame Wheel F550 99. DAx8 100. DJIInspire 101. DJIInspire 1 102. DJIInspire 2 103. DJIM P330z 104. DJIPhantom 105. DJIPhantom 1 106. DJIPhantom 2 107. DJIPhantom 2+ 108. DJIPhantom 2 Vision 109. DJIPhantom 2 Vision+ 110. DJIPhantom Vision + 111. DJIPhantom 3 112. DJIPh antom FC40 113. DJISpreading Wings S900 114. DJISpreading Wings S1000 115. DJISpreading Wings S1000+ 116. DJIS800 117. DJIS800 EVO 118. DJIT600 119. Draganflyer Guardian 120. Draganflyer X4ES 121. Draganflyer X4P 122. Draganflyer X6 123. DT

- 18 12 4. DYS D800

- X8 125. Eagle VTOL 126. Eagle V2 127. E

- Flite Apprentice 128. Event 38 E384 129. F

- 450 130. Falcon VTOL131. Fire Fl y 6

132. First Aerial Responder UAV 133. Flame Wheel G4 7.8 Skycrane 134. Flying

- Cam 3.0 SARAH 135. Foxtech Kraken 130 V2 136. FreeFl y S ys tems ALTA RTF 137. FreeFl y S ys tems Octocopter Airframe (Legacy) 138. G4 139. G4 models 140. GeoStar 141. GerMAP G220 142. GerMAP G180 143. goFarm GF

- 1 144. Gry

phon Dy namics X8 145. GT80X 146. Harris 18 HL 147. HEFF 148. Helicopters West DJ I Insp ire 149. Helicopters West Sky Jib 8 150. Helios 960 151. Hawkeye Mk

- III 152. HexaCrafter HC

- 1100 85. 153. HexaCrafter HO

- 1250 154. HH Blade 350QX2 AP 155. Hobby

king “Bixler” Fixed Wing Trainer 156. HoneyComb AgDrone 157. Horizon Hobby

Blade 350 Qx2 quadcopter 158. Hoverfl y LiveSky, BigSky 60 and H

- Frame 159. Hubsan X4 micro drone 160. HVP 14301 Multi Rotor 161. Id entified Sy stem 162. IMT Global xFold Cinema 163. Indago 164. InovalDrone:Inova One 165. InstantE ye Mk

- 2 166. InstantE ye Mk

- 2 Gen2 167. Intuitive Aerial Aeragon 168. K130 Octocopter 169. KongCopter X8 170. Kopterworx Hammer X12 171. Latitude HQ

- 4 Hy brid Multirotor 172. LB700 173. Leading Edge Precision Vision 10 174. Leptron Avenger175. Lewis Realty Associates Hexacopter 650 176. Liberty 1 177. Lockheed Martin Desert Hawk III 178. Lockheed Martin Indago 179. Matrix quad copter 180. MaxFlight 181. MD4

- 200 182. MD4

- 1000 183. Mikrokopter 2.5 184. ML B Compan y Super Bat 185. MU

- 1H 186. Multirotor G4 7.8 Skycrane 187. Nighthawk 188. Nighthawk VTOL 189. OktoXL6S12 190. PAG X4 191. Parksone Radian RTF 192. Parrot Bebop drone 193. Parrot PF 725100 Bebop Drone 14MP 194. Parrot Skycontroller 195. Patriot X4 196. Patriot X8 197. Finwing Penguin V2 198. Birdseyeview FireFly 6 199. Phoenix 200. Phoeni x VTOL 201. Phoenix 60 202. Phoenix 60LE 203. Pixhawk 204. Precision Drone Pacesetter 205. PrecisionHawk 206. PrecisionHawk Hawkeye Mk

- III 207. PrecisionHawk Lancaster 208. Precision Lancaster MK3 209. Prioria Hex 210. Prioria’s Maveric 211. Pulse Aerospac e, PA 01 Vapor 212. Pulse Aerospace Pulse Vapor 35 213. Pulse Vapor 214. Puma AE DDL 215. PV 14817 Multi Rotor 216. PV HL 1 217. PV HL2 218. Q1 219. Quadcopter LLC MikroKopter 220. Quiet UAV221. Qube

222. R/C Rotors and Aerial Media: Matrix Prof. Multi Rotor Frame & Octo Heavy L ift Prof. Multi Rotor 223. Frame Ronin Edition Microdrones:MD4

- 1000 224. RCTimer Hexacopter 225. RDASS 226. REHawk 500 227. REHawk 680 228. RF

- 70 229. Riegl RiCopter 230. RI TEWING Z3 Spade 47” 231. Ritewing Drake 60” 232. RI TE WI

NG Z3 Spade 70” 233. RI TEWING Z4 Spade 52” 234. RMAX 235. Roboflight 236. Rotomotion SR

- 15 237. RV Jet 238. Scout X4 239. SD02 240. Seahawk 1.2 241. SelectTech Geospacial’s EH

- 4 242. SenseFl y eBee 243. SenseFl y eBee RTK 244. SenseFl y eXom 245. Sensurion Magpie MP

- 1 246. Service

- Drone Recon One 247. Service

- Drone Blackbird 248. SH 900 249. ShadowHawk 250. Shrike 251. Sirius 252. SkyCatch 253. Sky

Jib 8 v.2 Heavy

L ifter 254. Sky

Phill y M I 255. Sky

walker Aero 256. Sky

walker Fl yi ng Wing X8 257. SnapRoll Me dia SUAS 258. Solutions Phoenix 30 259. SteadiDrone 260. Steadidrone Quad 261. Steadydrone QU4D 262. Steadidrone Mavik 263. SuperX/P2 Multirotor264. Swift Radioplanes Ly nx 265. Tali 500 266. Talon 120LE 267. Tarot FY690S Hexacopter 268. Tarot quadcopter 2 69. Tarot 680pro 270. Tarot 690 271. Tarot 900 272. Tarot 960 273. Tarot T

- 15 274. Tarot T15 C/F Folding Octocopter 275. Tarot T18 UAV 276. Tarot T690 277. Tarot T810 278. Tarot T960 279. Tarsier S ys tems MoAC 280. Tayzu Robotics Titan X8 281. TBS Discovery Pro 282. Team Black Sheep Discovery Pro Tarot T15 283. T

- Rex 700E F3C 284. TREX 800E DFC PRO 285. Trimble UX5 286. Trimble UX5 hp 287. Trimble ZX5 288. Turningy

Talon 500 289. TUP X8

- 800 290. Turbo Ace CINEWING 6 291. TurboAce Matrix

- G quadcopter 292. Turbo Ace matrix

- E 293. Turbo Ace MATRIX

- 1 294. UAV Solutions Phoenix 60 295. Universeye Penguin 296. Unmanned Fl yi ng Rolling Orb “UFRO” 297. US2 GreenHawk 298. UtiliCopter I TX8 299. VA03

- v1 300. VA04

- v1 301. VA07

- v1 302. Viking UAS Multicopter (VTOL) 303. Viking UAS FF

- X4/X8 304. VK

- Patriot X4/X8 305. Vikin g UAS Patriot X4/X8 Multirotor 306. Viking UAS X6 Model 800 307. Viking UAS Viking ONE308. VK

- 450

309. Viking Unmanned Aerial Sy stems, LL C AgriView VK Ranger EX 310. Viking VK

- FF

- X4 311. VK

- Ranger EX

- SAR Fixed Wing UAS 312. Volantex Raptor Tarot T

- 18 313. Volt Aerial Robotics Octane 314. Vulcan frame controlled by a DJIA2 flight controller 315. Vulcan Mantis 316. Vulcan Octocopter 317. Vulcan Raven 318. Vulcan UAV 319. Walk era TALI H500 320. Walkera Scout X4 321. Wookong DJ I 5800 322. xCel Drones XD550CDR 323. XFold Rig with four configurations: Quadcopter, Hexcopter, Octocopter and x12 Copter 324. X8

- MAttachment 2

1. Tarot X4 2. Tarot X6 3. Tarot X8 4. Tarot Iron Man 1000/1000S 5. DYS D800

- X4 6. DYS D800

- V6 7. DYS D1100

- V8