To: U. S. Department of Transportation

From: Jonathan Doud Date: March 14 th , 2015 Subject: Exemption Request Section 333 of the FAA Reform Act.

Dear Sir or Madam:

Pursuant to Section 333 of the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012 (the Reform Act), Jonathan Doud (the operator/applicant) , planned operator of Small Unmanned Aircraft Sy stems (UAS) equipped to conduct aerial photograph y and survey for various industries hereb y applies for an exemption from Federal Aviation Regulations (FARs) to all ow commercial operatio n of his UAS , so long as such operations are conducted within and under the conditions outlined herein or as may be established b y the FAA as required b y Section 333. As described more full y below, the requested exemption would permit the operation of UAS by the applicant for commercial use that would provide the following benefits:

1. Operations would be performed in an area of operation limited in size suitable to the specific use, in advance of flight. 2. The flight would be planne d in advance to minimize hazards to persons and property in the air and on the ground. 3. The operator would reasonably limit or control access to provide safety to those not involved in the operation. 4. Operation of a UAS would provide significant safety , environmental and other enhancements not possible by

larger sized aircraft. 5 . Provide a beneficial and currentl y unavailable service to government organizations and the general public that would serve the public interest. Approval of this exemption woul d thereb y enhance safe ty and fulfill the Secretary

of Transportation's (the FAA Administrato r) responsibilities to "...establish requirements for the safe operation of such aircraft s ys tems in the national airspace s ys tem." Sect ion 333(c) of the Reform Act.

It is possible to operate UAS so to not create a hazard to users of the National Airspace S ys tem (NAS), the public or pose a threat to national security if done so safel y and responsibly . The applicant has demonstrated their willingness to act safel y and responsibl y b y not engaging in commercial UAS operations.

AIRCRAFT AND EQUIVALENT LEVEL OF SAFETY The applicant proposes that the exemption requested herein appl y to civil aircraft that have the characteristics of UAS and that operate with the limit ations listed herein. These limitations provide for at least an equivalent or higher level of safety to operations under the current regulatory

structure as the proposed operations represent a safety enhancement to the already s afe aerial commercial ph otography and survey

operations conducted with conventional aircraft.

The UAS's planned to be operated are rotorcraft and fixed wing aircraft, each weighing 55 or fewer pounds including payload. They would operate, under normal conditions, at a speed of nomo re than 50 knots. The principal construction material of these UAS craft would be foam

and/or plastic. Operations will be performed by a qualified UAS PI C, as outlined below, to insure that the UAS will "not create a hazard to users of the national airspac e s ys tem or the public." Given the small size of the UAS involved and the pre

- planned environment within which they

will operate, the applicant believes that these operations fall squarel y within that zone of safety (an equivalent level of safety) in which Congress envisioned that the FAA must, b y exemption, allow commercial operations of UAS to commence immediately . Also, operation in a researched (to include applicable NOTAM ), pre

- defined area will prevent the possibility of a national security issue. The operation of UAS by knowledgeabl e professionals with experience in the NAS will serve to enhance safety , add to the public benefit and reduce environmental impacts related to current methods of aerial photography and survey. These limitations and conditions to which the operator, or its employees, acting as UAS PI C agrees to be bound when conducting commercial operations under an FAA issued exemption: Safety will be the first and foremost consideration in any UAS operation. Fl ights will be operated within line of sight of the PI C and/ or an observer. The UAS will weigh less than 55 lbs total. Flights will be operated in Class G airspace whenever possible. I f operation in other airspace is required, the relevant controlling agenc y will be notified at least 24 hours prior to the operation and, if required, any necessary permission obtained. Flights will be operated under visibility and cloud clearance requirements equivalent to Vi sual Flight Rules (VFR). 1

. The UAS will at all time s give way to any ai rcraft carrying persons. 2 . Minimum crew for each operation will consist of the UAS PI C. An observer will be utilized if the UAS will be flown beyond line of sight of the PI C. The observer, if required and PIC will at all times be able to communicate by voice and/or text. 3 . Prior to a UAS flight, an area of operation will be established. This area of operation will include a defined lateral and vertical area, where the UAS will operate. Safety procedures will be established for persons, property and applicable airspace within the area of operation. 4 . Flight planning will include flight completion with at least 20% battery power remaining as measured b y the UAS or appropriate timing. 5 . I f equipped, and appropriate for the operation, UAS aircraft will utilize GPS navigation, failsafe, return

- to

- home (RTH) and/or flight abort safety features. 6 . A briefing will be conducted in regard to the planned UAS operations prior to operation at each new location. All personnel who will be performing duties within the boundaries of the area of operation will be present for this briefing. 7 . All required permissions and permits will be obtained from appropriate state, county or city jurisdictions, including local law enforcement, fire, or other appropriate governmental agencies. 8 . Written, to include electronic, and/or oral permission from the relevant property owners will be obtained prior to an operation. 9 . The UAS pilot will be trained in advance for the safe operation of the UAS to be operated. This will include operation of the UAS both in normal and emergency modes of operation, and will include familiarization with the operation manual (or similar) if published by the UAS manufacturer. Training will also include ty pes of maneuvers to be performed and the safe operation in relation to persons, property and applicable airspace.It is the applicant's belief that the size, speed, operating environment, limitations and level of

applicant's experience in the NAS outlined provides an "equivalent level of safety" or better when operating a UAS for the public interest as outlined in Section 333 in the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012. It is requested that the FAA iss ue an exemption to permit safe, legal, commercial UAS operation by the applicant as soon as possible.

Thank you for your consideration,

Jonathan Doud 6525 Appaloosa Ct Klamath Falls, OR 97603

Appendix A EXEMPTION REQUESTS AND EQUIVALENT LEVE L OF SAFETY Jonathan Doud requests an exemption from the following regulations as well as any additional regulations that may

technically apply

to the operation of UAS 's:

14 CFR Part21, Subpart H: Airw orthiness Certificates This part establishes the procedures for th e issuance of an airworthiness certificate. While the FAA continues to work to develop airworthiness standards for UAS, we request an experimental certificate be issued for the UAS 's operated b y the applicant under either or both of the following provisions:

21 .191 Experimental certificates. Experimental certificates are issued for the following purposes: (a) Research and development . Testing new aircraft design concepts, new aircraft equipment, new aircraft installations, new aircraft operating techniques, or new uses for aircraft. (b) Showing compliance with regulations. Co nducting flight tests and other operations to show compliance with the airworthiness regulations including flight s to show compliance for issuance of ty pe and supplemental ty

pe certificates, flights to substantiate major design changes, and flights to show compliance with the function and reliability requirements of the regulations. Since the experimental certificate can be used for commercial purposes such as market survey s, sales demonstrations, and customer crew training, we would expect that an experimental certificate would permit our commercial purpose as well. The aircraft will not carry persons or property and will only fly un der strict operational requirements. Combined with the fact that any aircraft operated would be light weight and is constructed primarily

out of foam or plastic, we propose that a UAS will be at least as safe, if not safer, than a conventi onally certificat ed aircraft performing the same function. I f an experimental airworthiness certificate is not appropriat e for this application, then we request an exemption of 14 CFR Part21, Subpart H, and the requirement for an airworthiness certificate in general, citing the equivalent level of safety outlined in the previous paragraph.

14 CFR 91.203(a) & (b) C ivil A ircraft: Certifications required. The regulation provides that an airworthiness certificate, with the registration number assigned to the aircraft and a registration certificate must be aboard the aircraft.Additionally , subparagraph (b) provides that the airworthiness certificate be "displayed at the

cabin or cockpit entrance so that it is legible to passengers or crew." A UAS is too small t o carry documentation, does not have an entrance, and is not capable of carrying passengers or crew. To obtain an equivalent level of safety and meet the intent of 91.203, we propose that documents deemed appropriate for this aircraft by the FAA will be co

- located with the crew at the ground control station and available for inspection upon request. ln order to identify the aircraft, we propose the use of the UAS ' unique manufacturers serial number, and a contact telephone number be mounted on the UAS on a placard of reasonable size in relation to the UAS

. In the event that a unique manufacturer’s serial number is not available, the previously mentioned placard will be affixed to the UAS consisting of the model name and number of the UAS , as well

as a contact telephone number.

14 CFR 45.23 Display

of marks; general and 45.29 Size of marks. These regulations provide that each aircraft must display "N" and the aircraft's registration number in letters at least 3 inches high. Additionally , the aircraft mu st display the word "EXPERIMENTAL" in letters at least 2 inche s high near the entrance to the cabin, cockpit, or pilot station. A UAS does not have an entrance in which the word "EXPERIMENTAL" can be placed, and may not have a registration number assigned to it by the FAA. We propose to achieve an equivalent level of safety by including the word "EXPERIMENTAL" on the top or side of the aircraft , in the form of a placard. The label will be of a size that will not ove r whelm the aircraft, but will be reasonabl y readably to someone near the UAS . The placard outlined in the previous paragraph will provide sufficient identity should someone discover the aircraft on the ground.

14 CFR 91.9 Civil aircraft flight manual, marking, and placard requirements. This regul ation provides that no person may operate an aircraft unless a current, approved flight manual is in the aircraft. The intent of this requirement is to ensure that flight manual information is available to the aircrew while operating the aircraft. We reque st an exemption to this requirement since the UAS cannot carry such a manual, and if the UAS did carry such manual, it would be unavailable to the crew for review. To obtain an equivalent level of safety and meet the intent of 91.9, we propose that a current, UAS operation manual or equivalent be available the crew at the ground station any time the aircraft is in, or preparing for, flight.

14 CFR 91.109 Flight instruction; Simulated instrument flight and certain flight tests The regulation provides th at "No person may operate a civil aircraft that is being used for flight instruction unless that aircraft has fully functioning dual controls." The controls for a UAS do not currentl y have a set of full y functioning dual controls. I f a UAS pilot is being
trained, the pilot performing the training would be directly supervising and could take over the controls from the pilot in training if the need arose. This would be similar to the technique of a "throw

- over type" control wheel in some fixed wing aircraft. We feel that this technique meets the intent 91 .109 and provides an equivalent level of safety.

14 CFR 91.119 Minimum safe altitudes: General. The regulation provides that over sparsel y populated areas the aircraft cannot be operated closer than 500 feet to an y person, vessel, vehicle, or structure. Since the ty pical mission of this UASwould be photograph y or survey of persons, vessels, vehicles or structures it would be necessary to operate closer than 500 feet to the items listed. Operations will only be flown over property or persons where permission has been obtained, and careful pre

- planning has been performed. Further, UAS aircraft operate at a very slow airspeed, and a low mass, and do not need as much space to operate safel y, as outlined in 91.119 . We believe the slower speed, smaller mass and careful pre

- planning would provide an equivalent level of safety.
14 CFR 9l.l21Altimeter settings. The regulation provides that aircraft shall maintain cruising altitudes by reference to an altimeter setting available within 100 nautical miles of the aircraft. The UAS will normally be fl yi ng close to the ground, and in line of sight of the PIC or an observer. This line of sight operation will provide separation from other aircraft, obstructio ns and terrain, and would override the use of an altimeter for such a purpose. We feel that this will provide an equivalent level of safety.
14 CFR 91.151 Fuel requirements for flight in VFR conditions. The regulation provides that no person may begin a f light in an airplane under day

- VFR conditions unless there is enough fuel to fl y to the first point of intended landing and to fl y after that for at least 30 minutes. We feel the intention of this paragraph it to provide a reasonable reserve of energy

to p lan for a safe landing should there be a delay in landing. The close proximity to the ground station, the ability for both rotorcraft and small fixed wing aircraft to land in a very

small space and the built in energy level monitoring of the UAS we feel provide an equivalent level of safety if the flight is planned to be completed w ith 20% battery energy remaining. We request an exemption to the word "fuel" and ask for an equivalent interpretation with the word "energy ".

14 CFR Subpart E (91.401

- 91.4171

- Maintenan ce, Preventive Maintenance, and Alterations The regulation provides that the operator is primarily responsible for maintaining the aircraft in an airworth y condition, including compliance with part 39 and 43. Paragraphs 91.407 and 91.40 9 require that the aircraft be "approved for return to service by a person authorized under 43.7" aft er maintenance and inspection. It is our intention that the PI C perform maintenance and inspection of the aircraft and "be authorized to approve the aircra ft for return to serv ice." Prior to every

flight, the PI C will inspect the aircraft to ensure that it is in an airworthy condition. Any general maintenance procedures or replacement of consumable items outlined by the UAS manufacturer, if applicable, will be complied with by the PI C . ln no circumstance will a UAS be operated in a condition that is deemed, or suspected to be, unsafe. I f such a determination is reached, and the problem cannot be remedied to the satisfaction of the PI C , the UAS will not be
ope rated until consulting with the manufacturer or one of its authorized dealers to complete
necessary repairs. We feel that due to the size, construction, and simplicity of the aircraft, the PI C can ensure an equivalent level of safety

. 8900.227 Paragraph 1 6(cXa) PIG Medical. and Paragraph 16(eX1) Observer Medical. This policy

provides that both the PI C and observer must have a valid FAA second

- class medical certificate issued under part 67 in order to perform as a pilot or observer. Requiring the crew to meet the same medical req uirements as a commercial pilot carryi ng passengers in a large aircraft is an unnecessary burden.We propose that the minimum medical requirements be vision corrected to 20/20 and a valid,

state

- issued driver's license. The risk of both the PI C and observer becoming incapacitated at the same time and suddenl y i s very low. Further, since the UAS is operating close to the ground, it could be brought in for landing in a very short time if incapacitation was suspected. Finally , most UAS 's are equipped with an automatic return to home feature which would provide a final level of safety. We feel this would provide an equivalent level of safety

.