### US Department of Transportation Exemption Request Pursuant to Section 333 of the FAA 1



### Reform Act and Part 11 of the Federal Aviation Regulations 2

3



### October 30, 2015 4

5



### Thomas G. Preston 6



### 245 Wintree Lane 7



### New Lenox, IL 60451 8

9



### U.S. Department of Transportation 10



### Docket Management System 11



### 1200 New Jersey Ave., SE 12



### Washington DC 20590 13

14

15



### Dear Sir or Madam: 16

17



### The purpose of this letter is to petition the Fe deral Aviation Administration for an exemption 18



### from certain Federal Aviation Regulations in or der for the petitioner, Thomas G. Preston, to 19



### operate two Unmanned Aerial Sy stems (UAS) within the Chicago metropolitan area of the 20



### National Airspace System; to operate one UAS for his full time employer and to operate a 21



### second UAS in developing his aerial photography bus iness. Mr. Preston is well acquainted with 22



### the risks that come with the priv ilege of operating an aircraft in the United States, but also with 23



### the opportunities available via new unmanned flight technolog y. He holds a Private Pilot 24



### Certificate and has logged over 250 h ours of flight time in single-engine, land rated aircraft. He 25



### also has more than forty hours of flight time of that particular unmanned aircraft that is the 26



### subject of this Petition. As a life-long amateur photographer, th e petitioner would like to 27



### combine the benefits of an unmanned aviation platform with his pa ssion for photography to 28



### pursue the opportunities for safe, cost-effective aerial imaging services for his employer and for 29



### the public at large. 30

31



### Accordingly, and pursuant to 14 CFR §§ 11.61-.103 and Section 333 of the FAA Modernization 32



### and Reform Act of2012, PL 112-95 (Feb. 14, 2012), th e petitioner is submitting the following 33



### information with this request: 34

35



### Identity of Petitioner 36



### Petitioner: Thomas G. Preston 37



### 245 Wintree Lane 38



### New Lenox, IL 60451 39



### (815) 546-9434 40



### tompreston75@gmail.com 41

42



### Description of Operations. 43

44



### A. The UAS that is the Subject of this Petition. 45

46

### Mr. Preston is the owner of a DJI Phantom 3 Professional unmanned aircraft with a serial 47



### number of P77DCH25011197 and its associated portable ground st ation controller. His employer 48



### is the owner of another DJI Phantom 3 Professiona l unmanned aircraft with a serial number of 49



### P76DCG01016187 and its associated portable ground station controller (t ogether the "Subject 50



### UAS"). The Subject UAS is a quad-copter with High Definition camera mounted beneath it, 51



### piloted via a portable ground station. It has an operational weight of approximately 1,280 grams. 52



### The Subject UAS was purchased completely asse mbled and ready to fly. Mr. Preston has been 53



### flying the same model UAS for several months now. The Phantom 3 Professional is a widely 54



### known unmanned aircraft and is the same type of airc raft that has recently been the subject of the 55



### grant of many exemptions by the FAA (Examples: Exemption Numbers 11944, 11823, 11963, 56



### 11906, 12003 and 12042) . The portable ground station used by Mr. Preston to pilot the 57



### unmanned aircraft is a two-ch annel, wireless communication device using an FCC-compliant 58



### 5.8GHz frequency band for the video link, a nd a 2.4 GHz transmitted. The Subject UAS is 59



### equipped with lost-link capability, which enables the Phantom 3 Professional to enter a fail-safe 60



### Return-to-Home Mode in the event that the li nk between the aircraft and the ground station is 61



### lost. The Subject UAS can operate for a total of approximately 23 minutes on one battery charge. 62



### It has a maximum range from the ground st ation of 6,336 feet. However, it also has 63



### programmable height and radius limits to estab lish a safe operations ar ea. Without programming 64



### the Subject UAS, it has a default height limit of 400 feet AGL. 65

66



### B. The UAS Pilot in Command. 67

68



### Mr. Preston began flying as a student pilo t in 1986. He conducted his flight training 69



### predominantly at Howell Airport in Crestwood, Illinois. He was issu ed his private pilot 70



### certificate on April 18, 1987. As of the date of th is letter, he has 252 hours of accumulated flight 71



### time, with over 50 hours in a high-performance si ngle engine aircraft w ith retractable landing 72



### gear (Piper Arrow). Mr. Prest on has never been subject to an FAA enforcement action. Nor has 73



### he ever been involved with an aircraft accident or incident that required notification to the 74



### NTSB. With regard to the Subject UAS, Mr. Preston has made numerou s flights as a hobbyist, 75



### and has accumulated more than 40 hours of flight time with the Subject UAS. 76

77



### C. UAS Operating Parameters an d Intended Mission Profile. 78

79



### Mr. Preston is an Information Technology prof essional and a Marketing team member for his 80



### full-time employer, ILoca Services, Inc. located in Aurora, Illinois. In his capacity as a member 81



### of the marketing team at ILoca, Mr. Preston has honed his photography skills and seeks to 82



### expand his services to his employer and to perform like services for others. 83

84



### Exemption is requested for commercial operatio ns for aerial photography and video serving his 85



### employer, the real estate, land surveying, agri culture, construction, tran sportation, architecture 86



### and other industries as well as local, county, state and federal gove rnment agencies, individuals 87



### and serving at public events. Mr. Preston also requests the ability to offer flight training to others 88



### interested in pursuing this skill. 89

90



### The vast majority of the peti tioner's operations will be conduc ted in the Chicago metropolitan 91



### area. Those flights would generally occur at a distance of more than five miles from any airport. 92

### Because operations may be conducted at various lo cations in the area duri ng the period that the 93



### exemption would be in effect, ot her than at his employers loca tion in Aurora, IL, there are no 94



### specific locations at which Mr. Pres ton intends to operate. However, in the event that his services 95



### are requested in areas closer than 5 miles to an airport, being a mature and responsible licensed 96



### pilot, Mr. Preston will always adhere to current FAA Regulations and use good judgment. 97

98



### Mr. Preston would adopt with the fo llowing UAS Operating Parameters: 99

100



### 1. Missions will generally be conducted below 400' AGL, and within a radius distance 101



### recommended by the equipment manufacturer. 102

103



### 2. Each mission will begin with a pre-flight checklist that exceeds the manufacturer’s 104



### recommended system checkpoints to ensure that it is in a condition for safe operation. 105

106



### 3. Mr. Preston will yield right of way to all manned aviation activities at all times. 107

108



### 4. Mr. Preston will act as the pilot in command a nd will have direct line of sight visual 109



### observation of the aircraft at all times and w ill operate only within visual line of sight at 110



### altitudes at or below 400’ AGL. 111

112



### 5. Prior to the start of a flight, Mr. Preston w ill activate and use the UAS's GPS flight safety 113



### and lost-link protocol to ensure a controlled return of the ai rcraft in the event of a lost 114



### link or compromised communication. 115

116



### Specific Sections of 14 CFR from Whic h Petitioner Seeks an Exemption. 117

118



### Mr. Preston seeks an exempti on from the following FARs: 119



### 14 CFR Part 21, Subpart H Certifica tion procedures for products and

parts, Airworthiness Certificates

14 CFR Part 36 Noise standard s: Type and airworthiness

14 CFR § 45.23 Display of marks; general

14 CFR Part 61 Certification: P ilots, flight instructors, and

ground instructors

14 CFR § 91.7 Civil aircraft airworthiness

14 CFR § 91.9 Civil aircraft flight manual, marking, and

placard requirements

14 CFR § 91.103 Preflight action

14 CFR § 91.105 Flight crew members at stations

14 CFR § 91.109 Flight instruction

14 CFR § 91.119 Minimum safe altitudes

14 CFR § 91.121 Altimeter settings

14 CFR § 91.151 Fuel requirements for flights in VFR

conditions

14 CFR § 91.1 73 ATC clearance and flight plan in IFR

conditions

14 CFR § 91.203 Civil aircraft: Certifications required

### 14 CFR § 91.207 Emergency locator transmitters

14 CFR Part 91, Subpart E Maintenance

120



### The Extent of Relief Sought, and Re asons for Seeking the Exemption. 121

122



### 14 CFR Part 21, Subpart H. Part 21 establishes the procedures for issuance of certificates of 123



### airworthiness, as mandated by 49 U.S.C. § 44704. Under Section 333 and 49 U.S.C. § 44701(b), 124



### the FAA may exempt aircraft from airworthin ess certification. The pe titioner requests an 125



### exemption from the requirements of this Part because the size, wei ght, speed, operational 126



### capability and proximity to airports in which the Subject UAS pose significantly less of a risk 127



### that the risks posed by conventional aircraft. Manned aircraft pose ri sks to the life and safety of 128



### the crew; that is not a consideration with th e Subject UAS. Risks to third parties are also 129



### minimized given the lightweight and slow speed at which the Subject U AS would operate. Nor 130



### are there risks of fuel spillage or fire in the ev ent of an accident. Thus Mr. Preston requests that 131



### the FAA waive the requirement that the Subject UAS, particularly th e aircraft portion, require an 132



### airworthiness certificate. 133

134



### 14 CFR Part 36. FAR Part 36, Subparts A, F and 0, es tablish certain noi se standards for 135



### certification of various aircraft types. Because the Subject UAS w ould not have an airworthiness 136



### certificate, and given its small size and negligible noise impact , the petitioner requests an 137



### exemption from FAR Part 36. 138

139



### 14 CFR § 45.23. FAR Part 45.23 establishes marking requ irements for aircraft; paragraph (b) 140



### mandates that the registration number be displayed in letters not less than two inches in height. 141



### The Subject UAS is small enough that it cannot accommodate the type-size requirement. 142



### Accordingly, Mr. Preston requests an exemption from this part. 143

144



### 14 CFR Part 61. FAR Part 61 sets forth the certificati on requirements for pilots. Subpart E 145



### establishes the privileges and limitations for holders of a private pilot cert ificate. The petitioner 146



### requests an exemption that would allow him to operate the Subject UAS for compensation or 147



### hire as part of his aeria l photography business for th e reasons articulated in In re Trudeau, FAA 148



### Exemption No. 11138, and In re Astraeus, FAA Exemption No. 11062. Mr. Preston will operate 149



### the Subject UAS over property wher e the owner or owner's represen tative has requested that the 150



### operation occur. Furthermore, as a holder of a priv ate pilot certificate, Mr. Preston is an Airman 151



### who meets the knowledge base and skill level for operating an UAS. He thus requests and 152



### exemption from the requirement that he hold a commercial pilot certificate and anything other 153



### than a Third Class Medical certificate. 154

155



### 14 CFR § 91.7. Under FAR 91.7, no person may operate an aircraft unless it is in an airworthy 156



### condition. To the extent that "airwo rthy" is defined as requiring an airworthiness certificate, the 157



### petitioner would request an exemption from this FAR for the same reasons identified in his 158



### request for an exemption of 14 CFR Part 21, Su bpart H. He will not, however, operate the 159



### Subject UAS if it is not in a condition for safe flight, as required under FAR 91.7(b). 160

161



### 14 CFR § 91.9. Petitioner requests exemption from th e requirement of FAR 91.9, which requires 162



### that all aircraft have certain markings, placards and on-board flight manuals for the same reasons 163

### as stated in his request for exemption under 14 CF R Part 21, Subpart H, and for a deviation from 164



### the marking requirements of 14 CFR Part 36, Subparts A, F, and 0. 165

166



### 14 CFR § 91.103. FAR 91.103 mandates certain pre-flight action. Petitioner will take all 167



### necessary pre-flight action, but re quests an exemption from this requirement insofar as it is 168



### interpreted as requiring pre-flight actions appropriate to manned airc raft only (e.g., that flights be 169



### from an airport, etc.). 170

171



### 14 CFR § 91.105. FAR 91.105 mandates that crewmembers be at designated stations, have 172



### safety belts fastened, etc. Petitioner would be at a designated ground sta tion for each mission, but 173



### requests an exemption to accommodate the fact that the Subject UAS is unmanned. 174

175



### 14 CFR § 91.109. This FAR requires that all flight instruction be conducte d in aircraft that have 176



### dual controls, or throw-over controls, with an instructor. From time to time the petitioner will 177



### conduct his own refresher traini ng, but requests an exemption in sofar as this FAR would be 178



### interpreted to require that the ground control st ation have a second cont roller or dual-control 179



### capability. 180

181



### 14 CFR § 91.119. FAR 91.119 sets forth the minimum sa fe altitudes over various areas. 182



### Petitioner requests an exemption from this this FAR in order to accomplish the intended function 183



### of the mission for which he seeks an exemption. 184

185



### 14 CFR § 91.121. FAR 91.121 mandates various altimeter sett ings in order to maintain level 186



### flight. Petitioner requests and exemption from th is FAR as the Subject UA V will not have an 187



### altimeter that matches the requirements of this FAR. Operations with the Subject UAV will, 188



### however, maintain altitude below the 300' AGL ce iling by the petitioner m onitoring the altitude 189



### of the UAS and through the Subjec t UAS's ability to establish a flight zone that cannot exceed 190



### the ceiling. 191

192



### 14 CFR § 91.151. Petitioner requests an exemption from the VFR-flight fuel carrying 193



### requirements because the Subject UAS will opera te on battery power. Operations with the 194



### Subject UAS will, however, maintain a five-minute reserve battery time. 195

196



### 19 CFR § 91.173. Petitioner requests an exemption from the IFR-clearance requirement for 197



### flights into controlled airspace. It is possi ble Mr. Preston may opera te the Subject UAS in 198



### conditions that are IFR within controlled airspa ce (e.g., a flight on a da y with less than three 199



### miles visibility in a neighborhood that falls within the Class D airspace of KBFI). He would 200



### request that, after contacting A TC for the controlle d airspace, he would be allowed to operate in 201



### what might be IFR conditions, but where he sti ll has complete and unfettered line of sight 202



### visibility with the Subject UAS. 203



### 14 CFR § 91.203. FAR 91.203 requires that a civil aircraft have an airworthin ess certificate and 204



### a registration certificate. Mr. Preston requests that he be exempt from complying with this FAR 205



### insofar as it mandates issuance of an airworthin ess certificate, for the reasons stated in his 206



### request for an exemption under 14 CFR Part 21, Subpart H. 207

208

### 14 CFR § 91.207. FAR 91.207 prohibits operation of a US -registered aircraft unless it is 209



### equipped with an emergency locator transmitter. Given the limited distance of flights of the 210



### Subject UAS, Mr. Preston requests and exemption from this FAR. 211

212



### 14 CFR Part 91, Subpart E. FAR 91, Subpart E requi res that owners or op erators of aircraft 213



### have the aircraft inspected at certain intervals, and by certain mechanics. Petitioner requests an 214



### exemption from this Subpart because the Subj ect UAS has a trouble-shooting and maintenance 215



### program that is best executed by the owner/ operator, and is simply different from the 216



### maintenance of manned aircraft. Petitioner will, however, maintain a maintenance log and any 217



### maintenance records of repair of the Subject UAS. 218

219



### Public Interest and Benefit Considerations. 220

221



### Until recently, aerial imaging generally required use of a manned platform. Close-proximity 222



### aerial photography is difficult to do, and usually re quires the use of a heli copter or slow-moving 223



### aircraft at an appropr iate distance over a populated area. Th e operation must be conducted in 224



### VFR conditions, and adds aircra ft in congested airspace. 225

226



### By using the Subject UAS, Mr. Preston aims to provide the public with high quality, high 227



### definition aerial photography servic es at a fraction of the cost involved with manned flight. 228



### Furthermore, the risks inherent with manned fli ght are significantly reduced where the aircraft 229



### conducting the operation is less than five pounds , generally remains below 300' AGL, and can 230



### operate within a very confined space on, over or adjacent to the location being photographed. 231



### Finally, as a certificated airma n, he has the knowledge and experience to conduct a safe, efficient 232



### flight operation in furtherance of his occupation. Thus the public will be better served by having 233



### more affordable aerial imaging options availabl e through operations that are being conducted by 234



### an FAA certificated airman. 235

236



### Why the Exemptions Would Not Adversely Affect Safety. 237



### The proposed operations will not adversely a ffect safety for five primary reasons. 238

239



### First; the operations will be conducted in airsp ace where there is t ypically no activity among 240



### other users of the NAS. Flights are limited to property over whic h the owner has requested that 241



### the Subject UAS operate, so the owners will be aw are of the flight operation. As a pilot himself, 242



### Mr. Preston fully recognizes th e dangers that a small UAV could pose to all types of manned 243



### aircraft. The operations he is proposing to undertake pending approval of this Exemption 244



### Request are operations where manned aircraft will not fly. There would be a rigid separation 245



### between where a manned aircraft can fly (par ticularly due to FAR 91.119 which establishes 246



### minimum safe altitudes, to include an absolute prohibition of operating an aircraft within 500' of 247



### any structure) and where Mr. Preston would operate the UAV. 248

249



### Second; the Subject UAS is not a large aircraft. Weighing in at a maximum of just over 3 250



### pounds fully loaded, the like lihood that it would damage property or injure a person is low, even 251



### in the event of a mishap. Furthe rmore, aerial imaging is still so mething done via manned aircraft, 252



### and the risk there is at least equal to the risk posed by the proposed operation. 253

254

### Third; the Subject UAS has inherent lost-link capabilities to bring it back to its operating base 255



### for each mission. It is a redundant system for a more foreseeable problem that could arise. 256

257



### Fourth; in addition to the manufact urer’s preflight checklist (s hown immediately below), Mr. 258



### Preston has devised, and strictly adheres to, a more comprehensive preflight checklist that 259



### greatly enhances safe flight operations. Mr. Pres ton’s enhanced preflight checklist is shown as 260



### Exhibit A near the end of this document. 261

262 

### Fifth; the Subject UAS will be operated only by the pe titioner. Mr. Preston is a certificated pilot 263



### with sufficient flight time and experience with the subject UAS to conduct safe operations. 264

265



### Language for Inclusion in the Federal Register. 266

267



### Mr. Preston proposes that the following language be included in the Federal Register: 268

269



### Petition for Exemption. 270

271



### Federal Aviation Regulations from which Petiti oner seeks exemption: 14 CFR 14 CFR Part 21, 272



### Subpart H; Part 36; § 45.23; Part 61; §§ 91. 7; 91.9; 91.103; 91.105; 91.109; 91.119; 91.121; 273



### 91.151; 91.173; 91.203; 91.207; and 14 CFR Part 91, Subpart E. 274

275



### Description of Relief Sought: Th e petitioner is seeking an exemp tion from the above-referenced 276



### Federal Aviation Regulations to conduct aeri al photography using a light, unmanned aerial 277



### vehicle for companies or individuals seeking aeri al images of buildings, land, property, events 278



### and activities in the Chicago metropolitan area. 279

280



### Conclusion. 281

282



### Mr. Preston thanks the FAA for considering this request. Please do not he sitate to contact us 283



### should there be a need for additional informati on. We look forward to working with the FAA in 284



### its determination, and to being part of the disc ussion as the FAA considers how to expand, train, 285



### test, register, track and control comm ercial UAV use in the United States. 286

287



### Respectfully Submitted, 288



### Thomas G. Preston 289



### Petitioner 290

## Exhibit A: Enhanced Preflight Checklist 291 

# Preflight Checklist

292

UAS dAlpha: DJI Phantom 3 Professional 293

 Controller Preflight 294

o Activate cellular Wi

‐ Fi Hotspot 295

o Set controller flight mode to “P” 296

o Controller power on 297

o Confirm controller Status LED 298

o Confirm controller battery status LEDs 299

o Power on paired tablet 300

o Install sun shield (if needed) 301

o Close all unrelated apps 302

o Launch DJI Pilot app 303

 Aircraft Preflight 304

o Tighten all 4 props 305

o Install prop guards 306

o Install SD card 307

o Remove front & rear camera supports 308

o Power on aircraft 309

o Confirm aircraft battery status 310

o Perform compass calibration 311

o Asses location and set “Return to Home” altitude that clears all obstacles 312

o Confirm aircraft status LEDs 313

o Position aircraft on level surface with sufficient camera clearance 314

o Orient aircraft away from pilot 315

 Systems Check 316

o Confirm active Internet connection 317

o Confirm current location map 318

o Confirm home point 319

o Tablet volume to maximum 320

o Confirm 10 or more GPS locks 321

o Confirm DJI Pilot App flight status 322

o Position controller antennas 323

o Start aircraft motors 324

o Confirm audible home point set 325

o Initiate take

‐ off and establish low hover 326

o Confirm all flight controls 327

 Post Flight 328

o Power off aircraft first, then the controller 329

o Deactivate cellular Wi

‐ Fi Hotspot 330

o Close all apps and Power off tablet 331

o Remove SD card 332

o Charge all batteries 333

## Exhibit B: Phantom 3 Professional UAS Component Parts 334

335

336

337

338

339

340

341

342

343

344

345

346

347

348349

350

351

352 

## Exhib i t C: Ph a ntom 3 P rofessi o nal UA S Specifi c ations353

354

355