U.S Department Of Transportation, Docket Operations West

Building Ground Floor, Room WS-12-140

1200 New Jersey Avenue SE

Washington, DC 20590

Dear Sir or Madam,

Accordance to Section 333 of the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012, 

(the Reform Act), I, Kevin Spaulding, DBA Outback Aviation LLC, hereby apply for 

an exemption from Federal Aviation Regulations (FAR’s) detailed below to allow 

for commercial operation of a Phantom 3 Standard, four rotor UAS with an 

attached factory Gimbal Mounted DJI 2.7K UHD Camera for the purposes of 

aerial 

photography and video for real estate and client requested photo and video. As 

the Reform Act allows the FAA to “establish requirements for safe operation of 

such aircraft systems in the national airspace system”, I, Kevin Spaulding, user

of the Phantom 3 Standard will provide the following benefits and enhance or 

provide an equivalent level of safety.

1. The Phantom 3 Standard has a maximum takeoff weight of less than 3 

pounds. ( Maximum takeoff weight is 2.68 LBS) and thus offers a 

lightweight, small and compact platform compared to manned aircraft.

2. The Phantom 3 Standard offers significant safety, noise, emission, security 

and environmental benefits not available to larger manned aircraft.

3. The Phantom 3 Standard has numerous safety features such as an 

automatic return home feature should the signal between PIC and UAS be 

interrupted, GPS based altitude and distance locks, flight limit functions 

to provide preset limits for altitude, speed and distance limits, and low 

battery warnings which is automatically sent to the PIC and will return 

home automatically and land when needed

4. Operations utilizing the Phantom 3 Standard will provide a benefit to the 

general public and serve the public interest by providing the service of 

aerial photographic images and video to numerous businesses and 
individuals for considerably less than the previously available option of 

utilizing manned aircraft at an equivalent level of safety.

 The Aircraft Operations and an Equivalent Level Of Safety

1. The safe operation of the UAS will be the first priority before, during and 

after every operation. It will be taken with the most seriousness. Safety is 

number one and that is why I wish to request this exemption.

2. The Phantom 3 Standard has a maximum takeoff weight of 1216 grams or 

approximately 2.68 pounds. It has a diagonal length of 590mm and a 

maximum speed of 16 meters per second.

3. The UAS utilizes GPS/GLONASS location and is controlled by a high 

powered 5.8 GHz transmitter which keeps the UAS very responsive. All 

frequencies conform to Federal Communication Commission 

requirements. The maximum transmission distance is 1000m (U.S.) and 

automatically changes when entering other countries such as Europe or

Japan.

REMOTE CONTROLLER

Operating Frequency 5.725 GHz – 5.825 GHz, 922.7 MHz – 927.7 MHz (Japan)

Max Transmission 

Distance

FCC: 1000 m; CE: 500 m (outdoors and unobstructed, aircraft's altitude at 400 feet (120 

m))

Operating Temperature 0°C to 40°C

Battery 2600 mAh LiPo 18650

Transmitter Power (EIRP)

FCC: 19 dBm

CE: 14 dBm

Working Voltage 600 mA @ 3.7V

Charging Port Micro USB

4. All UAS operations will be conducted at a Visual Line Of Sight (VLOS) of no 

higher than 400 feet AGL.
5. No UAS operations will be conducted within 5NM of an airport.

6. No UAS operations shall occur over densely populated areas, large 

assemblies of people, stadiums, government buildings, power lines or 

major roads.

7. All nonparticipating persons shall be a minimum of 500 feet from the 

UAS.

8. If a nonparticipating person comes within 500 feet of the UAS, flight 

operations will cease immediately. Safety will be the most important 

concern.

9. All UAS operations shall take place during daylight hours and under 

conditions equivalent to Visual Flight Rules (VFR) with the UAS no more 

than 1/2 mile from the PIC.

10. All UAS operations will have a Visual Observer (VO) present and all 

operations will be with line of sight (LOS) of the VO.

11.The UAS will yield to all manned aircraft at all times.

12.All required permits and permissions will be obtained from local and state 

government should they be required.

13. A preflight inspection by the PIC will be performed prior to each flight to 

ensure that the UAS is safe for flight. A post-flight inspection will also be 

performed as an added level of safety.
14. At no time shall the UAS be operated with missing or manufactured 

unapproved parts, or in any condition that could pose a hazard to any 

other aircraft or structure or person on the ground.

15. Prior to all UAS operations a preflight meeting or observation will be held 

to determine the parameters of flight in a given location, any hazards 

present, weather conditions, safety procedures at the specific location 

and approximate duration, route of flight and temporary flight 

restrictions. If any hazards are found the flight will NOT take place. Once I 

receive an “Exemption Number” or a “Docket Number” I will obtain a 

“Certificate Of Waiver or Authorization” from the FAA Air Traffic 

Organization prior to conducting operations within the National Airspace 

System. 

16.The Phantom 3 Standard UAS will utilize GPS/GLONASS location, auto 

return home and will never be operated below 20% battery capacity.

17. The PIC for Outback Aviation LLC will be Kevin Spaulding. Mr. Spaulding 

holds an Airline Transport Pilot Certificate for airplane single and 

multiengine land, Flight Instructor Certificate and is an FAA Designated 

Pilot Examiner. Mr. Spaulding has been a certificated pilot since Aug 4, 

1982 and is currently a professional pilot with over 21,000 total flight 

hours and has never had a violation/incident or accident. Mr. Spaulding 

will maintain at least a current FAA third class medical. However, if Mr. 

Spaulding chooses to do so he could act as the PIC at the Sport Pilot level 

which does not require an FAA medical in which case he would be 

required to maintain a current drivers license. Mr. Spaulding is obtaining 

UAS training from another Phantom 3 Standard PIC and through the 

manufacturer. Mr. Spaulding is comfortable and confident in his abilities. 

Mr. Spaulding is also obtaining information from the local FSDO, the 

Michigan State Police, Michigan Department Of Natural Resource as well 

as local law enforcement entities to become current on any local 

operating restrictions as well as to make those entities aware of the 

intent to begin commercial operations and to assure them that all 

operations will be conducted safely and within the scope of the 
regulations. Mr. Spaulding will be the final authority when determining 

all preflight, flight and post flight actions and decisions regarding GO/NoGo decisions.

18. Visual Observers will be responsible to Kevin Spaulding. The visual 

observer will be responsible for being a “second set of eyes” for the PIC. 

The visual observer will watch the UAS to make sure that all operating 

limitations, weather minimums, obstacle clearances, and all applicable 

regulations are being complied with. The visual observer will also watch 

for hazards during the flight such as approaching people, vehicles, 

hazardous weather, and make sure that the UAS remains within its 

prescribed flight area. The observer will maintain visual contact with the 

UAS at all times. The visual observer will notify the PIC immediate if 

something unsafe, hazardous or potentially hazardous is observed. The 

visual observer will receive such training from Kevin Spaulding and will be 

thoroughly briefed by Mr. Spaulding prior to the operation. Mr. 

Spaulding’s family has been involved in aviation with him for over 20 

years and understand these regulations and the role of being a visual 

observer.

The Phantom 3 Standard is a small and safe sub 10 pound plastic and composite 

UAS utilizing four propellers driven by an Intelligent Flight 4480 mAh LiPo 4s 

15.2v smart battery with a maximum flight time of 25 minutes. The remote 

transmitter operates at 5.8 HGz. The aircraft software has been set to FAA 

regulations of 400 feet ceiling and recognizes zones around airports and forbids 

flight within 1.5 miles of the center of a type A airport, and outside the 1.5 

miles up to 5 miles the altitude increase from 35 feet to 400 feet in a conical 

fashion. For example: at 1.5 miles from the center the maximum altitude is 35 

feet and at 3.25 miles from the center the maximum altitude is 217.5 feet. This 

is an excellent feature and allows those who wish to take photos with their 

drone at very low altitude to do so safely. Example.....if an operator wants to 

take photo’s at 10 feet above the ground two miles from an airport, the 

operation can be conducted safely. The incorporated FLY SAFE technology 

restricts flight in areas deemed not permitted by the FAA, for example 

Washington DC.
The aircraft will automatically return to the point of origin or descend in place if 

the signal with the transmitter becomes weak or lost. The UAS is unmanned, 

operates at low altitudes, does not run on combustible fuel, has a very low 

decibel noise level emission, has a very small payload capacity and a short flight 

time which significantly reduces current risk levels involved with utilizing 

manned aircraft for aerial photography.

Additionally, past purchasers of aerial photography have had to contract with 

manned aircraft operations at significant expense. I will provide a public benefit 

in allowing more people to access aerial photography images and video at a 

significantly lower price and in the process we will be providing that data at a 

great or equivalent level of safety in comparison to similar manned operations.

It is the applicants belief that the small size of the Phantom 3 Standard UAS, the 

basic operating parameters outlined above, the specific exemptions listed 

below, equivalent level or safety provided at a much lower cost to the general 

public will allow the FAA to grant an exemption to DBA: Outback Aviation LLC, 

for commercial UAS aerial photography operations under Reform Act 2012.

The exemption requests follow below. 

Thank you for considering my request. 

Sincerely,

Kevin Spaulding

Outback Aviation LLC

1701 W Lotan Rd

McBain Mi 49657

231-878-3316

Email: outbackaviationllc@yahoo.com
Petition for Part 21;and 45.23(b); 61.113(a)&(b); 91.7 (a); 91.9(b)(2);

91.103(b); 91.109; 91.119; 91.121; 91.1519(a); 91.203(a)&(b);

91.405(a): 91.407(a)(1); 91.409(a)(2); 91.417(a)&(b) of the Title 14, Code Of 

Federal Regulations