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## Aerial Impact Southeast, Inc. **sUAS Flight Operations Manual** Aerial Impact Southeast is a Aerial Photography Com pany located in Lawrenceville, Ga., whose primary business is pr oviding aerial photography services to the Commercial Real Estate industry. The owner, David W. Cullens, PIC, holds a FAA Commercia l Pilot Certificate with instrument rating, with 3000+ total hours and 2500+ of those hours accumulated in the course of conducting an Ae rial Photography business. Currently, all work is performed using Ce ssna Single Engine Airplanes, C172's and C152's. The proposed sUAS ope rations outlined herein are services to be offered in addition to th ose already offered using full scale aircraft. PIC has also completed o ne of the few UAV training programs in the United States, FlySafe. Th e proposed operations will use (2) multirotor small UAV's, a D JI Phantom 2 & DJI S900. The PIC and observer have extensive experienc e and maintain proficiency in both of the proposed aircraft. Both of these airframes, along with their associated flight controllers and video downlink systems with on screen telemetry, are used extensiv ely throughout the world and have excellent safety records. PIC is fam iliar with the User manuals and operational procedures for both aircra ft and controllers. All operations will be conducted below 200'agl with the majority of work being done below 100'agl. Operations will only be conducted under Day Visual Meteorological Conditions and coor dinated with the appropriate ATC facility when operating within the vicinity of any controlled airports. Proposed operations would incl ude, but not be limited to, shooting aerial video and still photogr aphy of High End Residential properties, Industrial and Commercial p roperties, Golf Courses, Resorts and Marina's. As all of our photog raphy and video will be custom work, no flights will be made without the property owners/managers prior knowledge and consent.2

Aerial Impact Southeast respects individual privacy rights and will at all times make best efforts to avoid infringing on thos e rights. Aerial Impact Southeast will also not accept assignments t hat blatantly infringe on those rights. Upon arrival at a property shoot, the PIC and/or t he flight observer will survey the site for any possible obst ructions for safe flight and to plan the flight so as to capture all of the desired images in the available flight time. No flights will be made over persons or property not associated with the shoot. Property boundaries will be noted and a suitable takeoff and landing area will be establish ed. Depending on the particulars of the shoot, one or both aircraft coul d be used, though not at the same time. Following are more specific opera ting procedures for the two different aircraft Aerial Impact Southeast uses. The Primary aircraft is the DJI S900 carrying a Sony NEX-7 came ra, The secondary aircraft is a DJI Phantom 2 carrying a GoPro Hero3+ camera. 

## S900 Checklist Unpacking/Prep

• Upon arrival, survey the site for any obstructions that may interfere with a safe flight. If any are present, d evise a plan to avoid them or consider aborting the mission. PIC to determine the appropriate actions. • Establish a safe takeoff/landing area. This should be a minimum 10' x 10' area that can be kept clear, even during flight. • Establish a flight plan so as to capture all of the desired images. • Remove aircraft from the transporting vehicle and p lace on a solid level surface. • Inspect for any obvious damage that may have occurr ed in transit. • Extend the GPS mount to the vertical position. Ensu re it snaps into position and is secure.3

• One at a time, lift each of the (6) folding arms an d lock into place with the red latches. As you lift each arm, inspect the Power and ESC connections for security. If any non satisfacto ry conditions exist, aircraft will be grounded until repairs are made. • One at a time, remove the prop protectors, first fr om the boom and then from the propeller blades. Unfold and chec k propeller blades for any nicks or cuts that may degrade fligh t performance. Replace props as needed. • Inspect the vibration dampers that are used to moun t the motors onto the booms. Replace as necessary. • Install (2) battery packs, connected with the paral lel adapter cable, into the battery tray and secure with the Ve lcro straps. • Attach battery voltage monitors to each battery pac k. These will give a readout of total and individual cell voltage as well as an audible warning when voltage drops below a safe lev el. • Check flight battery for sufficient capacity to com plete the flight. Do not takeoff with less than 75%. A 100% charge wo uld indicate 4.2 volts per cell, a 25% charge would indicate 3.8 volts per cell. • Install battery tray to aircraft, using the side cl amps and rear latch. Ensure it is secure. • Check Camera battery. Charge or replace as necessar y. • Format SD memory card and set camera to desired set tings. Be sure "remote" shutter and HDMI are enabled. • Mount the camera to the gimbal. First connect the H DMI connector and then, holding the camera in place, se cure it with the 1/4-20 mounting screw. • Check Ground Station battery. Use a voltage monitor to prevent inadvertently over discharging. • Mount Ground Station on tripod and place in an area easily viewed by the PIC and/or observer.4



### Before Takeoff/Takeoff

• Review the Flight Plan with all persons involved. • Clear the area of persons not involved in the shoot . While there may be spectators wanting to observe the operation, ensure they maintain a safe distance from the perimeter of the shoot. • Turn the Ground Station power on. • Turn Camera Power on and remove lens cap. • Turn Camera Transmitter power on. Ensure adequate b attery level. • Turn Aircraft Transmitter power on. Ensure adequate battery level. • Check that transmitter is in GPS mode using Normal control. • Power on the S900. Connect the battery using the "b ullet" style connectors, first the negative and then the positiv e. • Check that the camera gimbal initializes OK. Camera should point forward after initialization. • Check gimbal and camera controls for correct operat ion. • Check that the ground station is displaying a camer a view along with aircraft telemetry data. • Once the required GPS satellites are acquired, indi cator on the aircraft will flash green, indicating a reliable fi x. Telemetry data will indicate the number of satellites acquired. • Ensure the airspace and area around the aircraft is clear and announce "Clear". • Start flight timer(s). Both transmitters have timer s. Use one or both. • Initiate motor start and ensure that all six rotor s are turning smoothly and without vibration. • Announce "Taking off". Takeoff and climb to an alti tude of 10 - 15 feet and make sure all controls are working properl y. • Check Telemetry information to ensure you are recei ving accurate data; battery voltage, altitude, distance, GPS, etc

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• When satisfied with the systems and aircraft contro l, retract the landing gear and proceed with the flight plan. • Check Telemetry data throughout the flight to monit or battery level, distance, altitude, camera info, etc.. • Maintain constant voice communication with observer

. • Though all operations will be conducted below 200', maintain visual scan for full scale aircraft. Yield to Full Scale aircraft at all times. 

### Landing/After Landing

• When photo shoot is completed, or in the event flig ht has to be terminated for other reasons, maintain safe altitud e and return to the landing area. • If any IOC control modes are being used (Home lock, Course lock, POI), turn them off when approaching the landing ar ea and use normal control mode. • Announce "Landing" and ensure that the landing area is clear. • Lower the landing gear at approx 20' agl and procee d to the center of the landing area. • When over the center of the landing area, slowly de scend and land with a minimum vertical velocity. • Shut down motors and make note of flight time. • Turn off aircraft power by unplugging the "bullet" connectors. • Turn off Aircraft and Camera transmitters. • Turn off Ground Station power. • Turn off Camera.6



## Phantom 2 Checklists Unpacking

• Place hard case on a solid level surface and open t he lid • Remove Phantom and Transmitter from case and inspec t for any obvious damage or conditions that may degrade fligh t performance. • Check propellers for any nicks or cuts that may deg rade flight performance. Replace props as needed. • Check flight battery for sufficient capacity to com plete the flight. Do not takeoff with less than 75%. Battery level is indicated by (4) green lights on the battery. • Check Camera battery • Format SD memory card • Check Ground Station battery • Mount Ground Station on tripod • Establish a safe takeoff/landing area • Survey site for any obstructions that may interfere with a safe flight. If present, have a plan to avoid. • Establish a flight plan so as to capture all of the desired images. 

### Before Takeoff/Takeoff

• Review the Flight Plan with all persons involved. • Clear the area of persons not involved in the shoot . While there may be spectators wanting to observe the operation, ensure they maintain a safe distance from the perimeter of the shoot. • Turn the Ground Station power on. • Turn Camera Power/Bluetooth on. • Turn Transmitter power on. • Check that transmitter is in GPS control mode.7

• Power on the Phantom. Press & hold power button. • Check that the camera gimbal has initialized OK. Ca mera should point forward and respond to the tilt control. • Check that the ground station is displaying a camer a view along with aircraft telemetry data. • Once the required GPS satellites are acquired, the aircraft lights will flash green, indicating a reliable fix. • Ensure the area around the aircraft is clear and an nounce "Clear". • Initiate motor start and make note of all four rot ors turning smoothly and without vibration. • Takeoff and climb to approximately 10 - 15 feet and make sure all controls are working properly. • When satisfied, proceed with the flight plan. 

### Before Landing/Landing

• When photo shoot is completed, or in the event flig ht has to be terminated for other reasons, maintain safe altitud e and return to the landing area. • If any IOC control modes are being used (Home lock, Course lock, POI), turn them off and use normal control mode. • Announce "Landing" and ensure that the landing area is clear. • Proceed to the center of the landing area, maintain ing a safe altitude. • When over the center of the landing area, slowly de scend and land with a minimum vertical velocity. • Shut down motors and write down flight time and bat tery voltage. • Turn off aircraft power by pressing and holding the power button on the battery • Turn off transmitter. • Turn off Ground Station power.8



### Maintenance After each days' flying, once back at the shop, a thorough inspection is performed on each aircraft: Phantom 2

• Remove SD memory cards and download images to compu ter. Make backup and format memory card. • Log aircraft times in the appropriate logs. • Check all propellers for nicks, cracks or other dam age that may degrade flight performance. Replace as necessary. • Ensure that the video transmitter and mini iOsd are securely attached. • Charge/discharge batteries to a safe storage level. S900

• Check all propeller blades for nicks, cracks or oth er damage that could degrade flight performance. Replace as necess ary. • Check that all prop hubs are secure. • Check all vibration dampers on the motor mounts. Re place as needed. • Check security of power and ESC connections on each arm. • Check security of the gimbal and accessories. • Check security of the GPS mount. • Check landing gear for any visible damage. • Check security of all electronic components. • Charge/discharge batteries to a safe storage level.9

Sample flight plan form