Lane Wooder 

T: +1 404 919 8430 

lane@advancedaerialcine.com 

January 16, 2015 

U. S. Department of Transportation 

Docket Management System 

1200 New Jersey Ave. SE 

Washington, DC 20590 

Attn: Nia Daniels 

Re: Docket No. FAA-2014-0990 

Dear Nia: 

 Thank you very much for your time and consideration in reviewing our Petition 

for Exemption from the FAA Regulations listed and discussed in detail in our Docket No. 

FAA-2014-0990. We look forward to many years of working in compliance with the 

FAA, and are happy to provide any information from our experience with sUAS 

equipment that can help in the creation of new regulations for our airspace. We 

acknowledge receipt of your email dated 1/7/15 asking for additional information needed 

to process our Petition that was missing. We have addressed each request below, in the 

same order as was listed in the email, and included the quoted request itself for reference: 

Describe the aircraft make and model for the proposed UAS operation. The 

description should include the size. 

All of our sUAS aircraft are professionally assembled by Quadrocopter LLC 

(www.quadrocopter.com). They all use the Cinestar 8 airframe manufactured by FreeFly 

Systems, which is a multi-rotor octocopter made mostly of carbon fiber with small 

amounts of plastic and uses both steel and aluminum fasteners. The airframes of our 

copters vary slightly in size depending on the length of boom arms, propellers, and legs 

we use. The minimum width/diameter of our copters is 113.0 centimeters and the 

maximum is 141.0 centimeters. The minimum height is 45.0 centimeters and the 

maximum is 50.8 centimeters. All of our sUAS aircraft use flight control boards, 

navigational control boards, power distribution boards, and GPS systems manufactured 

by MikroKopter (www.mikrokopter.de). All MikroKopter hardware is mounted exactly 

the same in each sUAS aircraft, and each set of sUAS hardware is programmed according 

to specifications set by MikroKopter and Quadrocopter using MikroKopter software. For 

control of the sUAS aircraft we employ radio systems manufactured by Graupner 

(www.graupner.de) that utilize the 2.4 GHz frequency band, and provide telemetry back 

to the operator detailing important status readings/notifications/warnings. All of our 

sUAS aircraft weigh between 9 to 10 pounds (flight ready) and have a maximum payload 
of 15 pounds. Therefore, the maximum weight any of our sUAS aircraft could be flying 

at is 25 pounds. The payload we carry are camera gimbals (mounts for cameras that allow 

remote control of pan and tilt that is independent of the sUAS movement) with a camera 

mounted that is used for filming. The camera gimbals operate remotely using the 2.4 GHz 

frequency band, and also transmit a video signal on the 5.8 GHz frequency band to the 

Gimbal Operator (not the sUAS Operator). 

List the aircraft’s cruise speed. 

Our sUAS aircraft have a maximum speed of 45mph (roughly 40 knots). We have set 

lower limits for our maximum speeds depending on payload: 40mph for payloads of 10 

pounds or less, 35mph for any payloads higher than 10 pounds. Since our sUAS aircraft 

are helicopters they can hover in the air, so they have a minimum airspeed of zero. Most 

operation of the sUAS aircraft will require speeds between 0 and 25mph, and faster 

speeds will only be used when operating in wide-open areas with no obstacles. 

Provide information regarding the radio frequency spectrum. This information can 

be located in the aircraft manual. 

Radio control of the sUAS aircraft operates in the 2.4 GHz frequency band. Radio control 

of the gimbal operates in the 2.4 GHz frequency band. Video transmission from the 

gimbal operates in the 5.8 GHz frequency band. 

Provide description of proximity to airports. 

Our normal operations will be outside of five (5) miles from any airport. If we are asked 

to operate within five (5) miles of an airport we will contact the airport's manager and 

control tower with all flight plans, as well as the FAA through our normal filing of a 

Form 7711-1 (or its equivalent) with the appropriate FSDO. Only upon approval of our 

flight plans from all entities will we agree to, and conduct, any operation within five (5) 

miles of an airport. 

Your petition references a pre-flight inspection. Describe the process used to 

determine if the UAS is airworthy and in safe condition for operation in the NAS. 

Prior to the first flight of the day, after transport of sUAS aircraft to a different location, 

or if the PIC determines the sUAS equipment is not functioning properly, an inspection 

of the following things will take place by the PIC: 

- All adjustment points on sUAS will be checked for tightness. 

- All stress points will be inspected for signs of damage or distress. 

- All motors and propellers will be inspected. 

- All wiring will be double checked. 

- All systems will be powered up and checked for errors. 

- All batteries will be inspected for any damage or signs of distress. 

- Confirmation will be made that batteries are fully charged and installed/connected 

properly. 
- Confirm radio transmitter: has sufficient charge; that all switches are in pre-flight mode; 

and is both working properly and receiving telemetry from the sUAS. 

- Conduct pre-flight motor/gyro calibration followed by confirmation of no errors with 

the flight and navigation systems. 

- Upon completion of all other pre-flight inspection tasks, a test flight will be conducted 

to confirm all systems are working properly and there are no errors or signs of problems 

with operation of the sUAS equipment. 

Once all of these tasks have been successfully completed the sUAS aircraft will be 

determined airworthy by the PIC. If any of these tasks are not able to be completed, then 

the sUAS will not be airworthy until appropriate maintenance is done and the PIC 

successfully completes another pre-flight inspection. 

Your petition references an aircraft manufacturer’s manual, however it was not 

submitted for the record. Please provide a copy of the aircraft. 

Our sUAS aircraft consist of Cinestar 8 airframes, MikroKopter electronics (flight, 

power, navigational, and GPS control boards), and Graupner radio control systems. Each 

of these components has their own manual, and these manuals have been added to our 

docket. Here is a list of the manuals for your reference: 

- Cinestar_8_Manual.pdf = Airframe 

- Flight_Ctrl_Board_Manual.pdf = MikroKopter Flight Control Board 

- GPS_Board_Manual.pdf = MikroKopter GPS Board 

- Graupner_GR24_Rx_Manual.pdf = Graupner Receiver 

- Graupner_MX20_Tx_Manual.pdf = Graupner Transmitter 

- MikroKopter_Tool_Manual.pdf = MikroKopter software for interfacing with boards 

- MK_Tool_Settings_Manual.pdf = How to program boards with MikroKopter Tool 

- Navigational_Board_Manual.pdf = MikroKopter Navigational Control Board 

- Power_Dist_Board_Manual.pdf = MikroKopter Power Distribution Board 

Thank you once again for your consideration of our petition. If there is any other 

information you need for us to provide, or additional questions you may have, please let 

us know. 

Sincerely, 

Lane Wooder 

Advanced Aerial Cinematography 

Owner and Operator