DANIEL SHERMETA 

37 POMEROY CT. AMHERST, MA 01002 

tel:(413) 575-3229 / ema il dshermeta@gmail.com 

Page 1 of 7

U.S. Department of Transportation February 22, 2016

Docket Management System Filed electronically

1200 New Jersey Ave, SE   

Washington DC 20590

Petition for Exemption Pursuant to Section 333 of the FAA

Modernization and Reform Act and 14 CFR § 11

Dear Sir or Madam:

Pursuant to Section 333 of the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012 and 14 CFR Part 11,

Daniel R. Shermeta ("Petitioner") hereby applies for an exemption from the Federal Aviation Regulations

listed below and such other exemptions as the FAA considers appropriate, to allow commercial operation

of an Unmanned Aircraft System, more specifically a DJI Phantom 3, to acquire aerial photography,

videography and real time imagery related to:  

 real estate marketing, inspection and surveying;   

 promotion of commercial businesses;   

 sport activities

 private events  

 travel and tourism;   

 news gathering;  

 search and rescue; and,  

 law enforcement;

provided such operations are conducted within and under the conditions outlined herein or as my be

established by the FAA as required by Section 333.

GLOSSARY OF ABBREVIATIONS  

AGL:   Above Ground Level

CFR:   Code of Federal Regulations

GPS: Global Positioning System

PIC:   Pilot In Command

Section 333:   FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012 (FMRA) Section 333

UA:    Unmanned Aircraft

UAS:    Unmanned Aircraft System  

VLOS:    Vertical Line Of Sight   
Page 2 of 7

A. Petitioners' name, address, phone number and email:

Daniel Richard Shermeta                    

37 Pomeroy Ct.        

Amherst, MA 01002     

(413) 575‐3229

dshermeta@gmail.com

B. The specific sections of Title 14 CFR from which an exemption is sought:

 Part 21 ‐ Subpart H  and any associated noise certification and testing requirements of part 36

 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) and (2)

 91.417(a) and (b)

C. The extent of relief sought, reason relief is sought and (when applicable) the manner in which

an equivalent level of safety will be achieved:

1) Complete relief from Part 21 ‐ Subpart H, and any associated noise certification and testing

requirements of part 36 is sought because the aircraft's size, weight, speed and limited

operating area meet the conditions of Section 333.

2) Complete relief from 91.7(a) is sought.  Because there will be no airworthiness certificate

issued for the UA, should this exemption be granted, no FAA regulatory standard will exist for

determining airworthiness.  Given the size, weight and relative simplicity of the UA, the use of

preflight checks recommended by the manufacturer and a thorough visual inspection prior to

each flight (as hereinafter described in more detail), an equivalent level of safety will be

achieved.

4) Complete relief from 91.119(c) is sought because UA are generally required to operate below

400 ft. AGL and the nature of much of the photography and videography intended reasonably

requires a distance closer than 500 ft.  Due to the size and weight of the UA, the fact that it

does not carry volatile fuel and requires a relatively small area to land, it poses substantially

less danger to persons or property on the ground than do manned aircraft conducting aerial

photography.  Also, by restricting flight to below 400 ft. AGL the chance of conflict with

manned aircraft is minimized.   

5) Relief from 91.121 is sought to the extent necessary to allow the PIC to utilize the UAS remote

controller's display of elevation in place of an altimeter.  The UAS does not have a typical

barometric  altimeter, however altitude information is provided the PIC via telemetry data link

from the onboard GPS sensor to the remote controller.  An equivalent level of safety will be

achieved by the PIC, before each flight, assuring adequate GPS signal exists and that the
Page 3 of 7

system reports an altitude of 0 ft. AGL before launch, and thereafter utilizing the remote

controller's altitude readout for altitude information.

6) Complete relief from 91.151(a)(1) and (b) is sought because the battery of the UA only

provides power adequate to support flight for approximately 23 minutes.  Considering the

relatively small area needed to safely land the UA and the nature of flight operations occurring

at lower altitudes from which landings can be quickly accomplished, an equivalent level of

safety will be achieved by the using the UAS' battery status monitor to limit flight time so that

landing occurs before the battery is depleted below 22% of its full charge, thus providing a

reserve of approximately 5 minutes   Moreover the UAS is designed to autonomously land the

aircraft before battery depletion occurs.

7) Complete relief from 91.405(a),  91.407(a)(1),  91.409(a)(1) and (2),  and 91.417(a) and (b)  is

sought because these sections, related to maintenance and inspection, along with part 43 of

the Chapter to which they refer, only apply to aircraft with an airworthiness certificate.   

Considering the size, construction and relative simplicity of the UA, to provide an equivalent

level of safety the Petitioner and PIC shall act as follows:  

i. Before each flight, the PIC shall assess airworthiness by completing a Preflight Inspection

including the preflight checklist recommended by the manufacturer plus a thorough

visual inspection of the UAS for any damage or irregularities.

ii. The Petitioner shall thoroughly inspect the UAS every 100 flight hours, perform minor

maintenance and repair and be the person authorized to approve the UAS for return to

service.  Maintenance and repair performed by the Petitioner shall be limited to repairing

small cracks, replacing propellers, checking electrical connections and updating software

and firmware for the on‐board computer, remote controller and mobile device used.  All

other maintenance and repairs will be performed by the manufacturer or their

designated repair facility.  

iii. The Petitioner shall document all inspections, maintenance and repair work performed

and make said documentation available on request of any FAA inspector or law

enforcement official.   

Moreover, due to the size, construction and simplicity of the aircraft, along with the recency

of the emergence of UA in civil aviation, the Petitioner is the person most familiar with the

UAS and best suited to maintain it in an airworthy condition to provide the equivalent level of

safety.  

D. The reasons why granting the petition will be in the public interest:

1) The needs of those selling, purchasing, inspecting or surveying real estate are often better

served when high definition, low level aerial imagery is used to convey the attributes of the

subject structures and/or topography and/or crops on the land from a bird's eye perspective.   

2) Businesses can frequently be better promoted in advertising through the use of low level

aerial imagery to convey the attributes of what they offer (e.g. including but not limited to golf

courses, resorts, etc.).   
Page 4 of 7

3) Certain sports activities, especially those whose participants engage in the sport outside the

general proximity of spectators (e.g. including but not limited to rock climbing,

mountaineering, mountain biking, sailing, boat racing, etc.), can be fostered through aerial

imagery conveying the activity to spectators as well as in promotional advertising to the

general public.

4) The photography/videography of private events (e.g. including but not limited to weddings,

reunions, etc.), can on occasion be enhanced when acquired from an aerial vantage point.

5) Travel and tourism can be fostered through the use of low level aerial imagery conveying in

detail the attributes of select areas of beauty and/or interest.

6) News gathering can often be facilitated and enhanced by aerial imagery and, in cases of

certain dangerous news events, be conducted with greater safety to ground personnel.  

7) Certain search and rescue operations can be expedited and conducted with improved safety

to ground personnel through the use of real time and recorded aerial imagery.   

8) Certain law enforcement operations can be expedited and conducted with improved safety to

ground personnel through the use of real time and recorded low level aerial imagery.

E. The reasons why granting the exemptions will not adversely affect safety, or how the

exemptions will provide a level of safety at least equal to that provided by the rules from which

the exemptions are sought:

In addition to the itemized manners in which an equivalent level of safety will be achieved for

each specific exemption sought as shown in section "C." above,  generally speaking the end

result of granting this petition is that safety is significantly enhanced by using a small, light

weight, UA with the specifications herein described and by carrying no passengers or crew,

rather than a manned aircraft of significantly greater proportions, carrying crew in addition to

flammable fuel to accomplish the aerial imagery.

Also, law enforcement operations shall only be conducted with the consent of a

governmentally appointed law enforcement officer.

F. A summary for publication in the Federal Register stating the rules from which exemption is

sought and a brief description of the nature of the exemptions sought:

Petitioner requests exemption from the following Sections of 14 CFR:

Part 21 ‐ CERTIFICATION PROCEDURES FOR PRODUCTS AND PARTS, Subpart H ‐ 

AIRWORTHINESS CERTIFICATES, and any associated noise certification and testing

requirements of part 36;  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) and (2);  91.417(a) and (b); and such other exemptions as the

FAA considers appropriate;

to the extent necessary to allow for the effective use of an unmanned aircraft system to conduct

aerial photography, videography and real time imagery missions related to:   
Page 5 of 7

(1) real estate marketing, inspection and surveying;  (2) business promotion;  (3) sports

promotion;  (4) private events;  (5) travel and tourism promotion;  (6) news gathering;  (7) search

and rescue; and, (8) law enforcement.

G. Additional information to support the request:

1) The UAS to be operated under the exemptions and its specifications are further identified as

follows:

 Make & Model: DJI Phantom 3:

 Diagonal size (including propellers): 590 mm (1 ft ‐ 11 in)

 Maximum Weight: 1280 kg (2 lb‐13 oz)

 Number of Rotors: 4

 Maximum Ascent Speed: 5 m/ s (984 fpm)

 Maximum Cruise Speed: 16 m/s (31 kts)

 Maximum Descent Speed: 3 m/s (590 fpm)

 Maximum Flight Time Before Battery Exhaustion: Approximately 23 minutes

For further specifications see the "Phantom 3 Advanced User Manual " which is submitted

simultaneously with this petition and incorporated herein by reference.  Petitioner intends to

operate the UA within the full range of its capabilities with the exception that flight will be

limited to 400 ft. AGL or below.

2) The Petitioner is a Commercial Pilot and Flight Instructor with over 3,000 flight hours in

manned aircraft.

3) In addition to any requirements mandated by the FAA, the following protocols shall be

implemented by the Petitioner:

a. Before acting as PIC during a commercial operation, the PIC shall have a minimum of

five hours of flight time in the same make and model UA including evasive and

emergency maneuvers and flight operations at similar altitudes and similar distances

from obstructions, structures, vehicles and persons as are envisioned in the

commercial operation.  The PIC shall meet the flight review requirements specified in

14 CFR § 61.56.  To the extent that a commercial pilot license and class two medical

certification continues to be required, the PIC shall be so certified.

b. All flights shall require a VO to assist the PIC in conducting the flight safely.  The VO's

role shall be to always keep the aircraft in sight and advise the PIC of any perceived

dangers to the flight, the approach within 50 ft of the horizontal boundaries of the

flight operation area or the unexpected presence of persons or vehicles in the flight

operation area.  The UA shall be operated within the VLOS of the VO at all times, the

PIC shall always maintain VLOS capability and the VO and PIC shall remain able to

communicate orally throughout the flight.  Should VLOS be inadvertently lost at any

time by the VO or the capability of VLOS be lost by the PIC, the flight shall be

immediately terminated either through the use of the autonomous return and landing
Page 6 of 7

capabilities of the UAS or under direct control of the PIC when the PIC believes the

landing can be safely executed under direct control.

c. The PIC shall, in advance of every flight:  

i. determine that all required documentation is present and available for inspection

by any FAA Inspector or law enforcement official;

ii. determine that weather conditions comply with the visibility and cloud clearance

requirements of Visual Flight Rules and are otherwise reasonably safe for flight;  

iii. determine that the intended flight will not operate within five nautical miles of

any airport unless a letter of agreement has been obtained from the airport's

manager or the operation is otherwise permitted under a Certificate of Waiver or

Authorization;

iv. when operations will occur within five nautical miles of an airport, communicate

by radio with Air Traffic Control to attain clearance as necessary, or in the case of

uncontrolled airports, advise aircraft traffic, on the appropriate frequency as

published on a current aeronautical chart, that unmanned operations shall be

occurring below 400 ft. AGL, the approximate location in relation to the airport

that the operations will occur and the estimated duration of flight operations;

v. define the horizontal boundaries of the flight operations area and the intended

route of flight in detail with the VO and adjust it as needed  to reasonably assure

the UA avoids:  

 approaching within 500 feet of any non‐participating person or any vehicle or

structure for whom the owner/controller or authorized representative thereof

has not consented to closer flight;

 crossing any property line to overfly areas for which the permission of the

property owner/controller or authorized representative has not been

obtained;

 direct overflight of any person who is not reasonably protected by way of

being within or under a structure or within a vehicle;  

 the establishment of a trajectory that would endanger any person in the event

of a power failure; and,

 flight into difficult to see obstructions (e.g.  guy‐lines, power lines, etc.);  

vi. complete a Preflight Inspection including:

 the preflight checklist recommended by the manufacturer;

 a  thorough visual inspection of the UA and remote controller for any damage

or irregularities;   

 verification that the climb to altitude for autonomous return and landings is

set higher than any obstacle within the flight area;.

 verification that the UA's internal compass has been calibrated;