James J. Carroll, Jr. August 10, 2015

13401 Harbor Oaks Lane Charlotte, NC 28278 Cell (704) 564-9217

Email: airfoiled@gmail.com

U.S. Department of Transportation Docket Management Group 1200 New Jersey Ave., SE Washington, DC 20590

RE: Exemption Request Section 333 of the FAA Reform Act of 2012

Attachments: These attachments are too larg e for submission via the submission portal. They are available at this website for viewing or download. http://www.dji.com/product/phantom-3/download

1) Phantom 3 Professional User Manual 2) Phantom 3 Professional Quick Start Guide 3) Phantom 3 Safety Guidelines and Disclaimer

References: 1) FAA Exemption No. 11138, Regulatory Do cket No. FAA20140481 in the matter of the petition of DOUGLAS TRUDEAU 2) FAA Exemption No.11136, Regulatory Do cket No. FAA-2014-0508 in the matter of the petition of ADVANCED AVIATION SOLUTIONS LLC 3) FAA Exemption No. 11080, Regulatory Do cket No. FAA20140355 in the matter of the petition of FLYING CAM INC

Dear Sir or Madam,

In accordance with the FAA’s Guidelines for Submitting a petition Exemption under Section 333 of the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012 , I, James J. Carroll, Jr., referred to hereinafter as the petitioner, request exempti on from the following sections of Title 14, Code of Federal Regulations §§

61.113(a); 61.113(b); 91.119(c); 91.121; 91.151( a); 91.405(a); 91.407(a )(1); 91.409(a)(1); 91.409(a)(2); 91.417(a) & 91.417(b)

In order to operate small unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) commercially in airspace regulated by the Federal Aviation Admini stration (FAA) for the purposes of aerial photography, cinematography, videography, mappi ng, crop surveying, inspections and other flight operations that could be performed safely and more cost effec tively with the use of

small UAS at low altitudes within the U.S. National Airspace System as compared to a manned aircraft. Operations will be performe d only at the request of and with the authorization and permission of clients of their authorized ag ents in order to facilitate

commerce and raise awareness of the beneficial uses of small unmanned air systems. Solong as such operations are conducted within an d under the conditions outlined herein or as may be established by the FAA as required by section 333. The conditions identified and proposed by the petitioner ar e drawn from references 13.

The FARs

The petitioner seeks exemption from the above mentioned FARs for the following reasons:

61.113(a) & (b) ; The petitioner requests relief in or der to facilitate the utilization of pilots, who hold a PRIVATE PILO T (or greater) certificate. Any pilots operating under this exemption would be required to comply with any provisions as set forth and in a similar fashion to the previous ly granted exemptions.

91.119(c) ; As discussed in Exemption 11138 (DOUGLAS TRUDEAU) operations conducted closer than 500 feet to the ground re quire that a UA be ope rated closer than 500 feet to essential person s, or objects that would not be po ssible without addi tional relief. The petitioner requests modification, waiver, or exem ption and clarificati on concerning the terms “congested areas” and “densely populated”. The petitioner requests waiver for this condition to allow reasonable and responsible operations in areas of subdivisions and neighborhoods if required.

91.121 ; As discussed in Exemption 11138 ( DOUGLAS TRUDEAU) is inapplicable

since the UAS does not have an altimeter and in stead uses electronic GPS with a barometric

sensor for altitude information.

91.151(a) ; As discussed in Exempt ion 11138 (ADVANCED AVIATION SOLUTIONS LLC) prior relief has been granted for manned aircraft to operate at less than the prescribed minimums, including Exemption Nos. 2689, 5745 & 10650. In addition, similar UAS specific relief has been granted in Exemption 8811, 10808, & 10673 for daytime, VFR conditions. The UAS provides batter y power remaining in percent to the PIC. The UA batteries provide approximately 25 minut es of powered flight. Information provided in the operating documents discusses proce dures regarding rema ining battery power management. Those documents contain a conditi on in which the PIC will initiate a landing procedure when battery power remaining reache s a specified level. Given the limitation on proposed operations and the location of thos e proposed operations, the FAA found that a reduced minimum power reserve for flight in daytime VFR conditions was reasonable.

91.405(a); 91.407(a)(1); 91.409(a)(1 ); 91.409(a)(2); 91.417(a) & 91.417(b) ; As discussed in Exemption 11138 (DOUGLAS TRUDEAU ), the petitioner proposes to inspect

and ensure that the UAS is in a condition fo r safe flight in accordance with operating

documents. The FAA found that adherence to the petitioner's operating documents and the conditions and limitations specified, descri bing the requirements for maintenance, inspection, and recordkeeping, were sufficient to ensure that safety would not be adversely

affected.The UAS

The DJI Phantom 3 Professional plus is a recently released successor to the DJI Phantom 2 series, a consumer grade small rotocr aft in the quadcopter configuration with an advertised weight of less that 46 ounces ( 1280g) designed primarily to carry aloft a high

definition camera. It has an advertised maximu m speed of less than 32 knots (16m/s) and a maximum climb rate of less than 1000 feet per minute (5m/s). It is powered by four electric

motors with a distance between motors of le ss than 12 inches (289.5m m). It utilizes an internal inertial measuring unit (IMU) with inte grated barometric sensor augmented with a global positioning system (GPS) to maintain its geospatial orientation and position. It is controlled primarily through an FCC certified radio control (R C) unit. Real time video and telemetry information is transmitted back to a ground control station allowing the operator and/or PIC to monitor battery level, GPS signa l strength, altitude (AGL), the distance from PIC, camera imagery, and to control camera a ngle. It has failsafe modes of operation for either loss of RC or GPS signal. The onboard flight controller can limit altitude, and maximum altitude can be preprogrammed by the PIC. Battery life limits flight times to approximately 23 minutes. The onboard flight co ntroller will warn the pilot via telemetry and external lighting cues before reaching a lo w battery state. An automatic termination of flight and landing will be initiated when the battery reaches a predetermined low state. It is anticipated that flights will usually last less than 10 minutes. More information is available

at http://www.dji.com/product/phantom3

Risk Mitigation

The petitioner has reviewed FAA exem ptions references 13 Conditions and Limitations sections and believes that the pr ocedures specified therein are reasonable and

will be utilized in order to manage and mitigate risk and ensure public safety. A preflight checklist will be developed and employed to ensure that the UA airworthiness will be verified before launch. Airworthiness will be maintained by performance of routine inspections before each flight, maintaining f light logs to record time on failure prone

components.

The petitioner requests that in a manner similar to reference 3, he be allowed to operate within 5 miles of an airport provided that:

“The UA may not operate in Class B, C, or D airspace without written approval from the FAA. The UA may not operate w ithin 5 nautical miles of the geographic center of a non-towered airport as denot ed on a current FAA published aeronautical chart unless a letter of agreement with that airport’s management is obtained, and the operation is conducted in accordance w ith NOTAM as required by the operator’s COA. The letter of agreement with the ai rport management must be made available to the Administrator upon request.”

Operations within 5 miles of an airport are not anticipated to be routine but the petitioner is requesting a mechan ism to facilitate such activ ities without requesting a new and separate exemption(s) should the need arise. Operations within cl ass B airspace are not requested due to the lack of a mode C transponder.Public Interest

Use of UAS in lieu of manned aircra ft would enhance safety and reduce the environmental impact as compared to similar operations conducted with manned aircraft of greater proportions, carrying a crew and fla mmable fuel. Additionally, use of the UAS in

order to facilitate commerce could lead to econo mic growth. Operations for this petition will enable service for property owners or their de signees seeking and enhanced perspective for characteristics, amenities, and benefits of their desired photographic subjects that cannot be displayed through ground level videography/pho tography. Aerial photography is a valuable marketing tool that can lead to increase d commerce and enhance personal photography. Crop surveying applications could lead to decr eased use of pesticides, fertilizer and water consumption as well as increased crop yields and decreased costs. Aerial surveying and inspections can increase work site efficien cy, improve volumetric estimations and reduce risks. The petitioner will provide clients with photographic data for these purposes on a “for hire” basis acting as an inde pendent contractor. A visual observation will be utilized. Liability insurance will be obtained commensur ate with the granting of this request for exemption. Flight data including flight time, C ontrol Unit operation ti me, incident, accident, and details concerning any deviations from nor mal operations will be available to the FAA for use in collecting data regard ing the use of UAS as part of this application. This data may be submitted to the FAA via traditional means, e.g. COA Monthly Reports, or other means as required.

Conclusion

The petitioner is requesting this exemp tion for the purposes of “aerial photography, cinematography, videography, mapping, crop surv eying, inspections and other flight operations”. The reason for such a general and broad based request is that the petitioner wishes to utilize a business strategy of horiz ontal integration and maximize economies of scope in order to capitalize on opportunities as they may arise in the future without the long

turnaround time associated with additional exemptions. The pe titioner’s business model is based on the idea of offering ad hoc small UAS services to individua ls or companies who wish to employ these services as a safe, effec tive, and legal option to enhance their business or hobby. The petitioner’s own market research shows that pent up demand for these services currently exists in the real estate market and other market s are just beginning to emerge. The petitioner has refrained from engaging in commercial use of the UAS. The primary purpose of seeking this exemption is to obtain the capability to offer those services while remaining in compliance. The petitioner is a licensed pilot, holding a private pilot certificate for flying single-engine land aircra ft since 1990. Additionally the petitioner has flown complex electric powered ra dio controlled aircraft since 2000.

Respectfully submitted,

James J. Carroll, Jr.