Petition	for	Exemption,	requesting	relief	from	the	FAA	

Modernization	and	Reform	Act	of	2012,	Public	Law	112-95	

FEB.	14,	2012,	Section	333.	

Whereas,	Westside	Drone	currently,	under	Co-ownership,	seeks	relief	from	

airworthiness	certification	requirements	from	the	above	mentioned	regulations.	

Westside	Drone	has	been	in	existence	since	6/20/2014.		The	purpose	of	Westside	

Drone	is	to	provide	a	safe	alternative	to	costly,	time	consuming,	expensive	aerial	

operations	currently	in	use.		

Additionally,		Westside	Drone	is	seeking	relief	from	the	section	of	14CFR,	which

regards	to	Title	14	Chapter	1	Subchapter	D	parts	60	through	67,	specifically	

61.1	to	61.429	regarding	pilot	certification.	In	addition,	I	respectfully	request	the	

FAA	grant	exemptions	from	regulations	that	address	general	flight	rules,	pilot	

certificate	requirements,	manuals,	maintenance,	and	equipment	mandates.		

I	request	the	use	of	an	unmanned	aircraft	system	(UAS)	within	the	National	Airspace	

System	(NAS)	until	such	time	as	final	rules	and	regulations	become	effective,	at	

which	time,	I	will	then	comply	with	the	aforementioned	rules	and	regulations.		

As	to	ensuring	my	security	clearance,	we	voluntarily	submit	our	names	and	all	

relevant	information	for	clearance	with	any	governing	board	having	jurisdiction	

over	this	issue.		All	operators	are	US	citizens	and	have	several	years	of	training	and	

flying	UAS,	all	applicants	are	willing	to	submit	social	security	number	and	any	other	

pertinent	information.

Personal	Information	of	Pilots:
Travis	Shields																																	Dominique	Claessens											Shawn	Wes	Conro	

821	3rd St. #306																													1120	Arizona	ave #1											11678	Darlington	ave.	#1	

Santa	Monica,	90403																				Santa	Monica,	CA	90401					Los	Angeles,	CA	900049

310-733-0053																																310-567-1472																								323-437-8873

travis@westsidedrone.com						domcix@gmail.com															shawnwconro@gmail.com

Westside	Drone	seeks	this	exemption	under	guidelines	of	Section	333	specifically	as	

it	relates	to	the	Real	Estate	&	Production	industries	in	the	greater	Los	Angeles	area	

under	the	small	UAS	rule.	Westside	Drone	has	gone	to	great	lengths	to	ensure	safe	

and	controlled	standards	for	every	UAS flight.		WSD	requires	a	UAS	pilot	as well	as	

observer	for	every	operation.		Additionally	the	UAS	we	are	proposing	is	largely	

considered	the	safest	UAS	in	the	field	based	on	the	fact	that	a	second	operator	can	

independently operate	the	camera	allowing	the	pilot	to	concentrate	on	safe	flight.

Under	this	Airworthiness	Exemption	WSD	intends	to	safely	fly	our	UAS,	specifically	

the	DJI	Inspire	1	with	a	Zenmuse	X3	Gimbal.		The	UAS	is	connected	to	the	latest

Apple	Ipad	Air	2	with	Retina	display	containing	immediate video	playback	for	the	

safest possible	flight	and	object	detection.		The	UAS	is	utilizes	a 5.825	GHz	fully	

secured	600mW	dual	antenna	system.		The	controller	is in	complete	compliance	

with	Part	15	of	the	FCC	rules,	FCC	ID#	SS3-GL6581410.		Additionally	the	UAS	

requires	two	pilots	to	operate, this	provides	additional	safety.		One	pilot	operates

the motion	of	the	UAS	while	a	secondary	pilot	independently controls	the	camera.		

This	allows	pilot	#1	to	focus	solely on	safe	operation	of	the	UAS.

Westside	Drone	has	gone	to	great	lengths	to	ensure	the	safety	of	the	general	public	

as	well	as	its	pilots	and	observers.		WSD	participates	in	UAS	Meet-Up	groups,	

provides	demonstrations	of safe	flying,	as	well	as	works with	local	UAS	makers	such	

as	Yuneec.		Our	team	has	over	1,000	combined	hours	flying,	and	have	piloted	in	in	

very	remote	urban	settings,	to	ensure	the	we	are	constantly	improving.		The	WSD	

team	is	committed	to	maintaining	the	upmost	safety	standards,	including	training,	

certification	and	any fees	required.		 WSD	plans	to	be	fully	compliant	with	the	

proposal	put	forward	from	NAS	(National	Air	Space).	Additionally	we	request	the	

use	of	a	UAS	within	NAS	until	final	regulations	are	in	place,	at	which	time	WSD	will	

be	fully	compliant.

Public	Interest	

We	at	WSD	all	have	diverse	backgrounds,	however	we	are	all	tied	together	by	a	

common	theme,	to	provide	a	service	and	give	back.		One	of	several	ways	we	plan	to	

do	this	is	by	drastically	reducing	the	carbon	footprint	around	us.		For	example	an	

average	helicopter	will	burn	approximately	150	pounds	of	CO2	an	hour,	whereas	

WSD	can	produce	the	same	media	and	create	zero	CO2.		WSD	wants	to	do	it’s	part	to	
help	keep	the	economy	going	onward	and	upward.		We	plan	to	do	this	by	offering	an	

affordable	option	to	Real	Estate	agents	to	give	their	listings	unprescented	views	and	

confidence	to	their	prospective	buyers.		We	believe	you	are	much	more	likely	to	

purchase	a	home	if	you	are	able	to	not	only	view	the	house	but	the	property,	

neighbors,	block	and	complete	surrounding	area.		An	increase	in	sales	in	the	market	

benefits	us	all.		The	select	properties	that	previously	required	a	crane	or	helicopter,	

producing	hundreds	of	pounds	of	CO2	can	now	be	captured	at	no	expense	to	the	

environment.

In	Conclusion:

WSD	stands	committed	to	practicing	safe	UAS	flight	both	on	the	set	of	productions	

as	well	as	within	the	Real	Estate	industry.		It	is	our	hope	that	by	utilizing	safe	

responsible	practices	it	will	help	us	collectively	move	forward	with	the	UAS	industry	

as	a	whole	in	these	exciting	times.

UAS	user	manual	too	large	to	include:

http://download.djiinnovations.com/downloads/inspire_1/en/Inspire_1_User_Manual_v1.2_en.pdf

Sincerely,

Travis	Shields																																	Dominique	Claessens											Shawn	Wes	Conro	

821	3rd St.	#306																													1120	Arizona	ave	#1											11678	Darlington	ave.	#1	

Santa	Monica,	90403																				Santa Monica,	CA	90401					Los	Angeles,	CA	900049

310-733-0053																																310-567-1472																								323-437-8873

travis@westsidedrone.com						domcix@gmail.com															shawnwconro@gmail.com