# Rupprecht Law P. A.

28 11 Grande Parkway, Suite 113 | Palm Beach Gardens, FL 33410 P: (561) 222

- 6979 | E: jon@jrupprechtlaw.com | W: www.jrupprechtlaw.com

March 2 9 , 2016 U. S. Department of Transportation Docket Management System 1200 New Jersey Ave., SE, West Building Ground Floor, Room W 12

- 140 , Washington, DC 20590



### Petition for Full Grant of Exemption to Allow Night Operations

Mechanikids, LLC dba Re d Raptor petitions for an exemption from the listed Federal Aviation Regulations (“ FAR ’ s ”) to conduct U n m a nn ed A i r c r a ft ( “ UA ” ) operations at night. The authority for the FAA to grant this petition is from 14 C.F.R. Part 11 and Section 333 of the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012.


## I. QUICK REFERENCE SUMMARY

 This exemption is amending to allow for night operations. All the underlying restrictions from the stock summary grants are the same.

 All the manuals will be sent in confidentially because they are considered proprietary und er 14 CFR 11.35 (b ) and Petitioner argue s they should be protected under 5 U.S.C. § 552 et. seq. 

## II. TABLE OF CONTENTS AND THE SPECIFIC REGULATIONS WHICH THE PETITIONER IS REQUESTING ADDITIONAL RELIEF FROM

T ABLE OF C ONTENTS I. QUICK REFERENCE SUMMARY

................................ ................................ ................................ ....... 1 II. TABLE OF CONTENTS AND THE SPECIFIC REGULATIONS WHICH THE PETITIONER IS REQUESTING ADDITIONAL RELIEF FROM

................................ ................................ ....................... 1 III. PETITIONER ’ S CONTACT INFO:

................................ ................................ ................................ ..... 3 IV. THE EXTENT OF RELIEF THE PETITIONER IS SEEKING

................................ .......................... 3 V. REASONS WHY GRANTING THIS PETITION WOULD BE IN THE PUBLIC INTEREST

........ 15Page 2 of 26

A. Lives Can Be Saved in Multiple Industries by Allowing Nig ht Operations

.............................. 15 B. Search and Rescue or Fire Fighting Operations Need to Be Conducted at Night

..................... 16 C. Unmanned Aircraft Flight Operations Are Overall Safer

................................ .......................... 16 D. Operations at night will allow certain inspections to be performed safely that could never be performed during the day.

................................ ................................ ................................ ...................... 17 VI. REASONS WHY THE PETITIONER IS SEEKING RELIEF FROM THE REGULATIONS AND WHY THE EXEMPTION WOULD PROVIDE AN EQUIVALENT LEVEL OF SAFETY

.................. 18 A. Regulations Which Have Been Addressed in Previous Exemptions, but Not Regarding Night Operations, which Petitioner Requires Additional Relief.

................................ ................................ .... 18 1. 14 C.F.R. § 61.101(e)(6); § 61.315(a) Recreational and Sport Pilot Night Limitations.

......... 18 2. 14 C.F.R. § 91.151(b) Fuel Requirements for Flight in VFR Conditions.

................................ . 19 B. Regulations Previously Exempted in Prior Exemptions and the Petitioner Does Not Request Additional Relief.

................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ .. 20 1. 14 C.F.R. § 61.23(a) & (c): Medical Certificates

................................ ................................ ....... 20 2. 14 C.F.R. § 61.101(e)(4) & (5): Recreational Pilot Privileges and Limitations, 14 C.F.R. § 61.113 (a): Private Pilot Privileges and Limitations; 14 C.F.R. § 61.315(a): Sport Pilot Limitations.

................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ 20 3. 14 C.F.R . § 91.7(a ): Civil Aircraft Airworthiness.

................................ ................................ ..... 21 4. 14 C.F.R. § 91.119(c): Minimum Safe Altitudes.

................................ ................................ ....... 21 5. 14 C.F.R. § 91.121: Altimeter Settings.

................................ ................................ ..................... 23 6. 14 C.F.R. § 91.151(a): Fuel Requirements for Flight in VFR Conditions.

................................ 23 7. 14 C.F.R. § 91.405 (a); § 91.407 (a)(1); § 91.409 (a)(1)& (2); § 91.417(a) & (b): Maintenance Inspections

................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ . 24 VII. FEDERAL REGISTER SUMMARY

................................ ................................ ................................ 24 VIII. OPERATING DOCUMENTS

................................ ................................ ................................ .......... 25 IX. STATUTORY AUTHORITY TO GRANT THIS PETITION

................................ ............................ 25 X. CONC LUSION

................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ .... 26Page 3 of 26 

## II I . PETITIONER ’ S CONTACT INFO: Mechanikids, LLC dba Red Raptor 2811 Grande Parkway, Suite 113 Palm Beach Gardens, FL 33410 Legal Counsel for Petitioner Rupprecht Law, P.A. 2811 Grande Parkway, Suite 113 Palm Beach Gardens, Florida 33410 jon@jrupprechtlaw.com 

## IV . THE EXTENT OF RELIEF THE PETITIONER IS SEEKING The Petitioner proposes these restrictions and believes that these limitations provide an equivalent level of safety, if not greater, as the FAR ’ s pre sently imposed upon the Petitioner. Except for restrictions
33

- 41 , restrictions 1

- 32 are exactly the same as the current exemption being given out.

1. The operator is authorized by this grant of exemption to use any aircraft identified on the List of Appro ved Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) under Section 333 at regulatory docket FAA

– 2007

– 3330 at www.regulations.gov, when weighing less than 55 pounds including payload. Proposed operations of any aircraft not on the list currently posted to the above docket wil l require a new petition or a petition to amend this exemption.
2. If operations under this exemption involve the use of foreign civil aircraft, the operator must obtain a Foreign Aircraft Permit pursuant to 14 CFR § 375.41 prior to conducting any commercial air operations under the authority of this exemption. Application instructions are specified in 14 CFR § 375.43. Applications should be submitted by electronic mail to the DOT Office of International Aviation, Foreign Air Carrier Licensing Division. Addit ionalPage 4 of 26

information can be obtained at https://cms.dot.gov/policy/aviation

- policy/licensing/foreign

carriers

. 3. PIC certification: Under this exemption, a PIC must hold eithe r an airline transport, commercial, private, recreational, or sport pilot certificate. The PIC must also hold a current FAA airman medical certificate or a valid U.S. driver ’ s license issued by a state, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, a territory, a possession, or the Federal Government. The PIC must also meet the flight review requirements specified in 14 CFR § 61.56 in an aircraft in which the PIC is rated on his or her pilot certificate.
4. PIC qualifications: The PIC must demonstrate the ability to safely operate the UAS in a manner consistent with how it will be operated under this exemption, including evasive and emergency maneuvers and maintaining appropriate distances from persons, vessels, vehicles, and structures before operating non

- training, proficiency, or experience

- building flights under this exemption. PIC qualification flight hours and currency may be logged in a manner consistent with 14 CFR § 61.51(b), however UAS pilots must not log this time in the same columns or categories as time a ccrued during manned flight. UAS flight time must not be recorded as part of total time.
5. Under all situations, the PIC is responsible for the safety of the operation. The PIC is also responsible for meeting all applicable conditions and limitations as pres cribed in this exemption and ATO

- issued COA, and operating in accordance with the operating documents. All training operations must be conducted during dedicated training sessions and may or mayPage 5 of 26

not be for compensation or hire. The operation must be conduc ted with a dedicated visual observer (VO) who has no collateral duties and is not the PIC during the flight. The VO must maintain visual sight of the aircraft at all times during flight operations without distraction in accordance with the conditions and l imitations below. Furthermore, the PIC must operate the UA not closer than 500 feet to any nonparticipating person without exception.
6. The UA may not be operated at a speed exceeding 87 knots (100 miles per hour). The exemption holder may use either grounds peed or calibrated airspeed to determine compliance with the 87 knot speed restriction. In no case will the UA be operated at airspeeds greater than the maximum UA operating airspeed recommended by the aircraft manufacturer.
7. The UA must be operated at an a ltitude of no more than 400 feet above ground level (AGL). Altitude must be reported in feet AGL.
8. The UA must be operated within visual line of sight (VLOS) of the PIC at all times. This requires the PIC to be able to use human vision unaided by any device other than corrective lenses, as specified on the PIC ’ s FAA

- issued airman medical certificate or U.S. driver ’ s license.
9. All operations must utilize a VO. The UA must be operated within the VLOS of the PIC and VO at all times. The VO may be used to satisfy the VLOS requirement as long as the PIC always maintains VLOS capability. The VO and PIC must be able to communicate verbally at all times; electronic messaging or texting is not permitted during flight operations. The PICPage 6 of 26

must be designated before the fl ight and cannot transfer his or her designation for the duration of the flight. The PIC must ensure that the VO can perform the duties required of the VO.
10. This exemption, the List of Approved Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) under Section 333 at regulatory do cket FAA

– 2007

– 3330 at www.regulations.gov, and all documents needed to operate the UAS and conduct its operations in accordance with the conditions and limitations stated in this grant of exemption, are hereinafter referred to as the operating documents. T he operating documents must be accessible during UAS operations and made available to the Administrator upon request. If a discrepancy exists between the conditions and limitations in this exemption and the procedures outlined in the operating documents, t he conditions and limitations herein take precedence and must be followed. Otherwise, the operator must follow the procedures as outlined in its operating documents. The operator may update or revise its operating documents. It is the operator ’ s responsibi lity to track such revisions and present updated and revised documents to the Administrator or any law enforcement official upon request. The operator must also present updated and revised documents if it petitions for extension or amendment to this grant of exemption. If the operator determines that any update or revision would affect the basis upon which the FAA granted this exemption, then the operator must petition for an amendment to its grant of exemption. The FAA ’ s UAS Integration Office may be conta cted if questions arise regarding updates or revisions to the operating documents.Page 7 of 26

11. Any UAS that has undergone maintenance or alterations that affect the UAS operation or flight characteristics, e.g., replacement of a flight critical component, must undergo a functional test flight prior to conducting further operations under this exemption. Functional test flights may only be conducted by a PIC with a VO and must remain at least 500 feet from other people. The functional test flight must be conducted in suc h a manner so as to not pose an undue hazard to persons and property.
12. The operator is responsible for maintaining and inspecting the UAS to ensure that it is in a condition for safe operation.
13. Prior to each flight, the PIC must conduct a pre

- flight inspect ion and determine the UAS is in a condition for safe flight. The pre

- flight inspection must account for all potential discrepancies, e.g., inoperable components, items, or equipment. If the inspection reveals a condition that affects the safe operation of the UAS, the aircraft is prohibited from operating until the necessary maintenance has been performed and the UAS is found to be in a condition for safe flight.
14. The operator must follow the UAS manufacturer ’ s maintenance, overhaul, replacement, inspection, and life limit requirements for the aircraft and aircraft components.
15. Each UAS operated under this exemption must comply with all manufacturer safety bulletins.
16. UAS operations may not be conducted during night, as defined in 14 CFR § 1.1. All operations

m ust be conducted under visual meteorological conditions (VMC). Flights under special visual flight rules (SVFR) are not authorized.Page 8 of 26

17. The UA may not be operated less than 500 feet below or less than 2,000 feet horizontally from a cloud or when visibility is less than 3 statute miles from the PIC.
18. For tethered UAS operations, the tether line must have colored pennants or streamers attached at not more than 50 foot intervals beginning at 150 feet above the surface of the earth and visible from at least 1 mile. This requirement for pennants or streamers is not applicable when operating exclusively below the top of and within 250 feet of any structure, so long as the UA operation does not obscure the lighting of the structure.
19. For UAS operations where GPS signal i s necessary to safely operate the UA, the PIC must immediately recover/land the UA upon loss of GPS signal.
20. If the PIC loses command or control link with the UA, the UA must follow a pre - determined route to either reestablish link or immediately recover or land.
21. The PIC is prohibited from beginning a flight unless (considering wind and forecast weather conditions) there is enough available power for the UA to conduct the intended operation and to operate after that for at least 5 minutes or with the reserve power recommended by the manufacturer if greater.
22. The PIC must abort the flight operation if circumstances or emergencies that could potentially degrade the safety of persons or property arise. The PIC must terminate flight operations without causing undu e hazard to persons or property in the air or on the ground.
23. Air Traffic Organization (ATO) Certificate of Waiver or Authorization (COA). All operations shall be conducted in accordance with an ATO

- issued COA. The exemption holder may applyPage 9 of 26

for a new or am ended COA if it intends to conduct operations that cannot be conducted under the terms of the enclosed COA.
24. All aircraft operated in accordance with this exemption must be registered in accordance with 14 CFR part 47 or 48, and have identification markings in accordance with 14 CFR part 45, Subpart C or part 48. For applicability and implementation dates of part 48 see 80 FR 78594 (Dec. 16 , 2015 ).
25. Documents used by the operator to ensure the safe operation and flight of the UAS and any documents required un der 14 CFR §§ 91.9 and 91.203 must be available to the PIC at the Ground Control Station of the UAS any time the aircraft is operating. These documents must be made available to the Administrator or any law enforcement official upon request.
26. The UA must re main clear and give way to all manned aviation operations and activities at all times.
27. The UAS may not be operated by the PIC from any moving device or vehicle.
28. All flight operations must be conducted at least 500 feet from all persons, vessels, vehicles, and structures unless when operating: a. Over or near people directly participating in the operation of the UAS. People directly participating in the operation of the UAS include the PIC, VO, and other consenting personnel that are directly participating i n the safe operation of the UA. b. Near but not over people directly participating in the intended purpose of the UAS operation. People directly participating in the intended purpose of the UAS must be briefedPage 10 of 26 on the potential risks and acknowledge and con sent to those risks. Operators must notify the local Flight Standards District Office (FSDO) with a plan of activities at least 72 hours prior to flight operations. c. Near nonparticipating persons. Except as pro vided in subsections (a) and (b) of this

sec tion, a UA may only be operated closer than 500 feet to a person when barriers or structures are present that sufficiently protect that person from the UA and/or debris or hazardous materials such as fuel or chemicals in the event of an accident. Under the se conditions, the operator must ensure that the person remains under such protection for the duration of the operation. If a situation arises where the person leaves such protection and is within 500 feet of the UA, flight operations must cease immediatel y in a manner that does not cause undue hazard to persons. d. Near vessels, vehicles and structures. Prior to conducting operations the operator must obtain permission from a person with the legal authority over any vessels, vehicles, or structures that wi ll be within 500 feet of the UA during operations. The PIC must make a safety assessment of the risk of operating closer to those objects and determined that it does not present an undue hazard.
29. All operations shall be conducted over private or controlled

- access property with permission from a person with the legal authority to grant access. Permission will be obtained for each flight to be conducted.Page 11 of 26

30. Any incident, accident, or flight operation that transgresses the lateral or vertical boundaries of the ope rational area as defined by the applicable COA must be reported to the FAA ’ s UAS Integration Office within 24 hours. Accidents and incidents must be reported to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) in accordance with 49 CFR § 830.5 per instructi ons contained on the NTSB Web site: www.ntsb.gov

. For operations conducted closer than 500 feet to people directly participating in the intended purpose of the operation, not protected by barriers, the following addition al conditions and limitations apply:
31. The operator must have an operations manual that contains at least the following items, although it is not restricted to these items. a. Operator name, address, and telephone number.

b. Distribution and Revision. Proced ures for revising and distributing the operations manual to ensure that it is kept current. Revisions must comply with the applicable conditions and limitations in this exemption. c. Persons Authorized. Specify criteria for desi gnating individuals as direc tly participating in the safe operation of the UAS. The operations manual must include procedures to ensure that all operations are conducted at distances from persons in accordance with the conditions and limitations of the exemption.

d. Plan of Activitie s. The operations manual must include procedures for the submission of a written plan of activities.Page 12 of 26 e. Permission to Operate. The operations manual shall specify requirements and procedures that the operator will use to obtain perm ission to operate over p roperty or near vessels, vehicles, and structures in accordance with this exemption. f. Security. The manual must specify the method o f security that will be used to ensure the safety of nonparticipating persons. This should also include procedures that wi ll be used to stop activities when unauthorized persons, vehicles, or aircraft enter the operations area, or for any other reason, in the interest of safety. g. Briefing of persons directly participating in the intended operation. Procedures must be includ ed to brief personnel and participating persons on the risks involved, emergency procedures, and safeguards to be followed during the operation. h. Personnel directly participating in the sa fe operation of the UAS Minimum Requirements. In accordance with t his exemption , the operator must specify the minimum requirements for all flight personnel i n the operating manual. The PIC at a minimum will be required to meet the certification standards specified in this exemption. i. Communications. The operations man ual mus t contain procedures to provide communications capability with participants dur ing the operation. The operator can use oral, visual, or radio communications as along as the participants are apprised of the current status of the operation.Page 13 of 26 j. Acciden t Notification. The operations man ual must contain procedures for notification and reporting of accidents in accordance with this exemption. In accordance with this exemption, the operating manual and all other operating documents must be accessible to the PIC during UAS operations. 32. At least 72 hours prior to operations, the operato r must submit a written Plan of Activities to the local FSDO having jurisdiction over the proposed operating area. The Plan of Activities must include at least the following: a. Dates and times for all flights. For seasonal or long

- term operations, this can include the beginning and end dates of the timef rame, the approximate frequency (e.g., daily, every weekend), and what times of t he day operations will occur. A new plan of activities must be submitted prior to each season or period of operations. b. Name and phone number of the onsite person responsible for the operation. c. Make, model, and serial or N

- Number of each UAS to be used.

d. Name and certificate number of each U AS PIC involved in the operations. e. A statement that the operator has obtained p ermission from property owners. Upon request, the operator will make av ailable a list of those who gave permission. f. Signature of exemption holder or representative stating the plan is accurate. g. A description of the flight activity, including ma ps or diagrams of the area over which operations will be conducted and the al titudes essential to accomplish the operation.Page 14 of 26

In accordance with this exemption, the Plan of Act iviti es and all other operating documents must be accessible to the PIC durin g UAS operations. A new Plan of Activities must be submitted should there be any ch anges to items (a) through (g).

If operations are to be conducted at night , as defined in 14 CFR § 1 .1, restrictions 33

- 41 apply , as well as any restrictions in t he proposed operating documents, in lieu of restriction 16.

33. Only the aircraft with the submitted AFM will be used for night flying.
34. The aircraft is to be equipped with the lights required in 14 C.F.R. § 91.209.
35. The aircraft must be modified according to the AFM so as to comply with the color, position, and intensity of the lights prescribed.
36. If a sport or recreational pilot is being used, they are required to read the night training material in the manuals.
37. The takeoff/landing area will be lit by either a landing light on the aircraft or ground lights.
38. The PIC and VO will begin night adaptation at least 45 minutes before the start of operations.
39. Before operations begin, there must be an obstru ction walk around inspecting the flying area , as best as possible, to look for unlit objects that might cause flight hazards such as powerlines, tree branches, and telephone wires. The inspection of the area must include identifying alternative landing sit es in case of an emergency.
40. Operations needing to be performed within 500 ft of individuals at night must be done according to the operations manual.Page 15 of 26

41. The PIC must have at least 3 hour s of night flying experience before c o n d u c t i n g commercial operation.

Unless otherwise specified in this grant of exemption, th e UAS, the UAS PIC, and the UAS operations must comply with all applicable parts of 14 CFR including, but not limited to, parts 45, 47, 61, and 91.


## V . REASONS WHY GRANTING THIS PETITION WOULD BE IN THE PUBL IC INTEREST A. Lives Can Be Saved in Multiple Industries by Allowing Night Operations Currently, no individuals or businesses have received an exemption to conduct UA commercial flights at night

. This is very unfortunat e as many more risks are created at n ight for search and rescue, firefighting, roof inspections, etc. that are not present during the day. Individuals have the choice of either completing the tasks at hand on foot as best as they can or hire a commercial manned helicopter to perform the
opera tions. Operations at night, for people on foot or in manned helicopters are more dangerous because the probability of an accident is much greater and the potential to mitigate is much less (E.g. you can ’ t see where you fall and you cannot see where to auto rotate if there is a helicopter engine failure

. ) This puts people on the ground and in the air at a greater r isk for serious injury or death. The preliminary data for 2014 showed that roofers had high fatal accident rate per 100,000 workers of 46.2 death s with pilots and flight engineers having an even higher of 63.2. 1 Both of these groups , as well

1 http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/cfoi.pdf at page 4.Page 16 of 26

as many more, would be benefited by allowing unmanned aircraft to perform the same dangerous jobs of operating at night.



### B. Search and Rescue or Fire Fighting Ope rations Need to Be Conducted at Night Problems are inconvenient by nature. One major inconvenience is that they sometimes happen in the evening and go late into the night. Local search and rescue or emergency response cannot currently contract with civilia n air assets because current exemptions limit 333 operators from flying at night. Granting this exemption will allow search and rescue or local emergency response to full utilize civilian air assets as opposed to putting emergency response or fire fighters at risk.

T h e P e t i t i o n e r i s aware of the 24 hour NOTAM requirement in the blanket COA; however, even if this was not removed by an ECOA, night operations could be conducted the second night.


### C. Unmanned Aircraft Flight O perations Are Overall Safer There are no pilots on board the UA and due to the small size of the UA, there is less risk posed to the public on the ground in case of an emergency. If the aircraft needs to be sacrificed somewhere safe, the aircraft can be sacrificed because there is no one on aboard.
T he UA ha ve multiple motors while most manned aircraft have only one engine; thus, there is some motor redundancy for some UA in case of a motor malfunction . Also, the lower cost nature of these aircraft means you can more easily purchase completely new equ ipment which lessens the chances for equipment failure d u e to fatigue. The UA are much safer than traditional helicopters because instead of having to ferry the helicopter from the airport all the way to the shooting location in the air ove r people and buildings and back to thePage 17 of 26

airport, a UA can be transported by ground vehicle. This greatly benefits the public because it minimizes the amount of time that the UA is required to fly in the air to get the job c o m p l e t e d

. Manned airplanes and helicopters produce great amounts of noise pollution disrupting the quiet enjoyment of private property of the public on the ground. UA are much quieter and will not disrupt the public as much as manned aircraft; thus, the public will benefit from a reduction in noise pollution. In addition to the noise pollution reduction, engine or turbine powered aircraft produce exhaust which affects the environment , while the UA of the petitioner are electric and do not produce any emission. The byproduct of 100LL emissions is lead entering the air the public b r e a t h e s while electric motors produce none. The environment and the public are benefited by the use of UA. UA use batteries for power which are not as flammable and explosive as 100LL or Jet A. If ther e was an emergency where the UA crashed, there is less of a chance for individuals being injured from an explosion or fire. UA also use smaller propellers than manned helicopters which will cause far less damage in the case of a crash than the “ grenading ” that typically happens during a manned helicopter crash. Lastly, the UA will be operated at lower altitudes than most manned aircraft. This vertical separation greatly reduces the chance of a mid

- air collision.



### D. Operations at night will allow certain inspec tions to be performed safely that could never be performed during the day.
A prime example is roof inspections. The inspector has to wait u n t i l evening to inspect for the temperature differential in the wet spots of the roof (warmer) versus the dry spots o f the roof (cooler). This puts many inspectors at risk who have to climb on ladders at night or walk around on roofs at night.Page 18 of 26

Additionally, certain wild life monitoring can only be done at night when the animals are active , such as with monitoring endange red sea turtles coming ashore at night to lay their eggs.


## V I . REASONS WHY THE PETITIONER IS SEEKING RELIEF FROM THE REGULATIONS AND WHY THE EXEMPTION WOULD PROVIDE AN EQUIVALENT LEVEL OF SAFETY

The regulations in this petition will be broken up into t wo sections: (1) regulations which have been addressed in previous exemptions, but not regarding night operations , which Petitioner requires additional relief and (2) regulations previously exempted in prior exemptions and the petitioner does not request additional relief.


### A. R egulations Which Have Been Addressed in Previous Exemptions, b ut N ot Regarding Night Operations, w hich Petitioner Requires Additional Relief
.

1. 14 C.F.R. § 61.101 (e)(6) ; § 61.315 ( a) Recreational and Sport Pilot Night Limitations. In Exemption # 11221, # 11284, and many others the FAA has declared that requiring the PIC to

“ hold either an airline transport, commercial, private, recreational, or sport pilot certificate ” provides an equivalent level of safety as the regulations. All of these provide for day flight training but sport and recreational pilot licenses lack the ability to operate at night.

S ection 61.101 says, “ Except as provided in paragraphs (d) and (i) of this secti on, a recreational pilot may not act as pilot in command of an aircraft . . . Between sunset and sunrise[.] ” Section
61.315 says, “ You may not act as pilot in command of a li ght

- sport aircraft . . . [a] t night. ”Page 19 of 26

An equivalent level of safety can be provide d by requiring all sport and recreational pilots and VOs operating u n d e r t h e r e s t r i c t i o n s i n t h i s p e t i t i o n a n d to complete the material in the night operations section of the manuals provided.

2. 14 C.F.R. § 91.151 ( b ) Fuel Requirements for Flight in VFR C onditions. Previous exemptions have been for 91.151(a) but the Petitioner is asking for an exemption from 91.151(b). This regulation says, “ No person may begin a flight in a rotorcraft under VFR conditions unless (considering wind and forecast weather conditions) there is enough fuel to fly to the first point of intended landing and, assuming normal cruising speed, to fly after that for at least 20 minutes. ” The multicopters being flown by the Petitioner are rotorcraft 2 and are subject to the burdensome 20 minute requirement.

An equivalent level of safety can be produced by the petitioner operating under the manuals as well as keeping a 5 minute flight reserve on the batteries.

2 14 C.F.R. § 1.1 says, “

Rotorcraft means a heavier

- than

- air aircraft that depends principally for its support in flight on the lift generated by one or mor e rotors .”Page 20 of 26 

### B. Regulations Previously Exempted in Prior Exemptions and the Petitioner Does Not Request Additional Relief.
1. 1 4 C.F.R. § 61.23(a) & (c): Medical Certificates The reason why the Petitioner is seeking relief from 61.23(a) & (c) is because E xemption s #
11221 , # 13567 , and many others have determined that a U.S. driver ’ s license being used in lieu of a medical certificate provides an equivalent level of safety as sub

- sections (a) and (c). Therefore, since the proposed restrictions have already been determined by the FAA to provide an equivalent level of safety, the Petitioner is seeking the same exact restrictions as other previously granted exemptions to allow for commercial operations using at a minimum either a third

- class medical or a driver ’ s license with an airman certificate.

2. 14 C.F.R. § 61.101(e)(4) & (5): Recreational Pil ot Privileges and Limitations , 14 C.F.R. § 61.113 (a): Private Pilot Privileges and Limitations ; 14 C.F.R. § 61.315(a): Sport Pilot
Limitations. In Exemption # 11221, # 11284, and many others the FAA has declared that requiring the PIC to “ hold either an a irline transport, commercial, private, recreational, or sport pilot certificate ” 4 provides an equivalent level of safety as the regulations. Likewise, the petitioner is asking for the same restriction for daylight operations

.

4 Habana Avenue, LLC dba Fly Habana , Exemption No. 11284 at 4.Page 21 of 26

3. 14 C.F.R . § 91.7(a ): Civil Air craft Airworthiness.

Section 333 allows the FAA to determine if t h e Petitioner ’ s UA will need an airworthiness certificat e to be compliant. The restrictions and procedures contained in the confidentially submitted manuals will be sufficient for determining the airworth iness of the aircraft. The restrictions proposed will require the PIC to conduct a pre

- flight check to determine airworthiness and the operator to be

“ responsible for maintaining and inspecting the UAS to ensure that it is in a condition for safe operation .” 5 The referenced manuals along with the restrictions obligating the PIC and operator to check and ensure the UA will provide “ sufficient means for determining an airworthy condition in accordance with § 91.7(a). ” 6 Therefore, the Petitioner seeks relief t o operate under the proposed restrictions and the manuals because they will provide an equivalent level of safety as the regulations.

4. 14 C.F.R. § 91.119 (c) : Minimum Safe Altitudes
. Section 91.119, sub

- s ection (c) requires the petitioner to operate at “ [a] n altitude of 500 feet above the surface, except over open water or sparsely populated areas. In those cases, the aircraft may not be operated closer than 500 feet to any person, vessel, vehicle, or structure. ” 7 This regulation is impractical because it wou ld require the Petitioner to opera te at 500ft above the ground f or many operations . This i s a burdensome problem because many of the objects that need photographing will all be at least 500ft away and the photos or video obtained w ould be almost completely useless.

5 Proposed Restriction 9. 6 Clayco Exemption No. 11109 at 13

. 7 14 C.F.R. § 91.119(c).Page 22 of 26

The Petitioner proposes to operate within the restrictions given in the Clayco Exemption which the FAA has previously determined will provid e an equivalent level of safety

. “ [A] ll persons not essential to flight operations (nonparticipating pers ons) must remain at appropriate distances. In open areas this requires the UA to remain 500 feet from all persons other than essential flight personnel (i.e. the PIC and VO). . . . If barriers or structures are present that can sufficiently protect nonpart icipating persons from debris in the event of an accident then the UA may operate closer than 500 feet to pe rsons afforded such protection. The operator must ensure that nonparticipating persons remain under such protection. If a situation arises where non participating persons leave such

pro tection and are within 500 feet of the UA, flight operations must cease immediately.

. . . [O] perations may be conducted c loser than 500 feet to vessels, vehicles and structures when the land owner/controller gra nts such permission and the PIC makes a safety assessment of the risk of operating closer to those objects. ” 8 Our proposed restrictions will classify the flight instructor and the student as essential perso ns under r estriction 2 6

. The student can be PIC, sport certificate or higher, and receive instruction from a certificated flight instructor or the flight instructor can be PIC and be giving instruction to a non - certificate d student. Whoever is PIC must be complying with restric tion
13. The restrictions will provide an equivalent level of safety as the regulations

.

8 Clayco Exemption No. 11109 , at page 15

.Page 23 of 26

5. 14 C.F.R. § 91.121: Altimeter Settings
. This regulation requires each person operating an aircraft to maintain cruising altitude by refere nce to an altimeter that is set “ ... to the elevation of the departure airport or an appropriate altimeter setting available before departure. ” 9 Many UA do not have an altimeter but use GPS to determine height. Furthermore, the cost of installing an altimeter will be financially bu rdensome. An equivalent level of safety can be achieved by the operator, pursuant to following the manual s and restrictions and using a GPS instead of an altimeter. Furthermore, the Clayco petition and many other petitions have been granted allowing GPS to be used in lieu of an altimeter.

6. 14 C.F.R. § 91.151(a): Fuel Requirements for Flight in VFR Conditions
. Section 91.151 (a) prohibits an individual from beginning “ a flight in an airplane under VFR conditions unless (considering wind and forecast weathe r conditions) there is enough fuel to fly to the first point of intended landing, and, assuming normal cruising speed

- (1) During the day, to fly after that for at least 30 minutes; or (2) At night, to fly after that for at least 45 minutes. ” 10 Most unman ned aircraft cannot fly longer than 30 minutes ; therefore, most would always be violating this regulation if they took off. The Petitioner believes that an equivalent level of safety can be achieved by restricting operations to

“ the intended operation and to operate after that for at least five minutes or with the reserve power recommended by the manufacturer if greater. ” 11

9 14 C .F.R. § 91.121. 10 14 C.F.R. § 91.151(a). 11 Habana Avenue, LLC dba Fly H abana, Exemption No. 11284 , at page 5

.Page 24 of 26

7. 14 C. F.R. § 91.405 (a); § 91.407 (a) (1); § 91.409 (a) (1)& ( 2 ); § 91.417 (a) & (b): Maintenance Inspections These regulations require t hat 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 ” 12 and maintain the aircraft in compliance with Part 43. These regulations do not apply because the FAA has authority under Section 333 to determine the u n m a n n e d a i r c r a f t listed do no t need an airworthiness certificate. Since there is no airworthines s certificate to maintain, Part 43 does not apply. An equivalent level of safety to Part 43 will be achieved because small UA are very limited in size and will carry a small payload and operate only in restricted areas for limited periods of time. Moreo ver, the Petitioner is the best suited to maintain the aircraft in an airworthy condition to provide the equivalent level of safety as Part 43. Lastly, the petitioner will operate in accordance with the manual s which will provide an equivalent level of saf ety as the burdensome regulations.



## V II . FEDERAL REGISTER SUMMARY

As required by 14 C.F.R. Part 11, below is provided a summary of the petition to be published in the Federal Register should it be determined that publishing is needed.

12 14 C.F.R. § 91.405(a).Page 25 of 26

The Petitioner is seek ing an exemption from the following rules:

14 C.F.R. 61.23(a) & (c); 61.101(e)(4), (5) , & (6) ; 61.113(a); 61.315(a); 91.7(a), 91.119(c); 91.121; 91.151(a)(1) and (b) ; 91.405(a); 91.407(a)(1); 91.409(a)(1) & (2); and 91.417(a) & (b). to operate an unmanned aircraft, weighing 55 pounds or less, commercially for aerial data collection operations and closed

- set T V /movie filming at night using the DJI Inspire 1, DJI S1000, and Freefly Systems Alta

. This petition for exemption is n eeded because lives can be saved in many industries

. T h e s e m a n y i n d u s t r i e s can benefit by using unmanned aircraft as opposed to u s i n g manned aircraft or b y completing the operations on foot. Additionally, allowing night operations to be performed gives search and rescue, fire depar tments, and disaster response the ability to contract with civilian operators to benefit from the unmanned aircraft all throughout the night. The ability t o safely operate UA in lieu of hiring a manned aircraft to fulfill the se missions will provide a far safer alternative than using a jet or piston power ed aircraft because small batteries will be used instead of large amounts of highly flammable fuel, the UA can b e transported to the operation location via ground vehicle as opposed to ferrying in the air, the UA will be operate d at altitudes far below manned aircraft, and the UA will use clean electricity for power as opposed to 100LL which has the by

- product of sm all amounts of lead being released into the atmosphere for the public to breath e
. The proposed restrictions contained in the petition and manuals will provide an equivalent level of safety as the regulations. 

## VIII . OPERATING DOCUMENTS Mechanikids, LLC dba Red Raptor will operate only within the limitations above and the limitations listed in the confidentially submitted manual s
. Th e limitations above will be followed if there is a conflict with the manual s
. 

## I X . STATUTORY AUTHORITY TO GRANT THIS PETITION The Federal Aviation Act gives the FAA the authority to grant e xemptions. “ 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 publicPage 26 of 26

interest. ” 13 Furt hermore, Section 333 of the FAA Moder nization and Reform Act of 2012 gives the Secretary of Transportation the ability to consider whether the unmanned aircraft can operate in the national airspace until final regulations are published. Lastly, Congress di rected the Secretary for the Department of Transportation to “ establish requirements for the safe operation of such aircraft in the national airspace system. ” 14 The FAA has already established requirements for summary grants which t h e P e t i t i o n e r i s adopting and incor porating into our proposed operating restrictions.


## X . CONCLUSION

The operation of Mechanikids, LLC dba Red Raptor using small UA , weighing less than 55 lbs., conducted under the proposed restrictions outlined above, will provide an equivalent level of safety as the burdensome regulations; therefore, this petition should be granted without delay. If I can be of any assistance, please do not hesitate to contact me at (561)222

- 6979 or at my email jon@jrupprechtlaw.com Sincerely yours,

_____________________ Jonathan Rupprecht, Esq.

13 49 U.S.C. § 44701(f); accord 49 U.S.C. § 44711(b). 14 FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012, Pub. L. No. 112

- 95, § 33 3(c), 126 Stat. 11 (2012).