Special Temporary Authority application - Applicant Name
Name of Applicant:
Flying Grounds, Inc.
Special Temporary Authority application - Best Contact
First Name:
Scot
Last Name:
Refsland
Phone Number:
510-393-0969
Title:
CEO
Special Temporary Authority application - Certification
Applicant certification
Neither the applicant nor any other party to the application is subject to a denial of Federal benefits that includes FCC benefits pursuant to Section 5301 of the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988, 21 U.S.C. Section 862, because of a conviction for possession or distribution of a controlled substance. The applicant hereby waives any claim to the use of any particular frequency or electromagnetic spectrum as against the regulatory power of the United States because of the prvious use of the same, whether by license or otherwise, and requests authorization in accordance with this application. (See Section 304 of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended.) The applicant acknowledges that all statements made in this application and attached exhibits are considered material representations, and that all the exhibits part hereof and are incorporated herein as if set out in full in this application; undersigned certifies that all statements in this application are true, complete and correct to the best of his/her knowledge and belief and are made in good faith. Applicant certifies that construction of the station would NOT be an action which is likely to have a significant environmental effect. See the Commission's Rules, 47 CFR1.1301-1.1319.
Date:
2016-09-13 00:00:00.0
Signature of Applicant (Authorized person filing form):
Scot T Refsland
Title of Applicant (if any):
CEO
Special Temporary Authority application - Explanation
Please explain in the area below why an STA is necessary:
We are producing the inaugural World Drone Racing Championships to be held at Kualoa Ranch, Oahu, Hawaii, October 17-22, 2016. The aircraft will use Video transmitters operating in the 5.8ghz spectrum. The event is an official sanctioned amateur event by the Academy of Model Aeronautics (AMA). We are also working directly with the FAA to become an Accredited Race Organization and this event is the test for this accreditation. We have the approval and permits from the private landholders. We have submitted our rules and risk management plans to the FAA, and they are comfortable with the event from an airspace perspective. We are asking for an Experimental Special Temporary Authority for use of video transmission technologies within the 5.8Ghz spectrum. The Drone Races use “First Person View” (FPV) camera and transmitter technologies on a small quadcopter airframe, using a 5.8Ghz Video Transmitter. We would like to use these frequencies: We would like to use the spectrum between 5473MHz and 5917MHz. Currently these frequencies are already allocated for use for video transmission, but the power output under FCC Part 15 is insufficient for safe and effective use. We would like to increase the power from 25mw up to 250mw to provide stable video signal for the pilots.
Special Temporary Authority application - Information
Callsign:
WK9XKK
Class of Station:
MO
Nature of Service:
Experimental
Special Temporary Authority application - Manufacturer
Equipment 1 Experimental
No
Equipment 1 Manufacturer
ImmersionRC
Equipment 1 Model Number
Duo5800v4.1
Equipment 1 No. Of Units
8
Equipment 2 Experimental
No
Equipment 2 Manufacturer
ImmersionRC
Equipment 2 Model Number
5.8Ghz 25mW Vtx
Equipment 2 No. Of Units
18
Equipment 3 Experimental
No
Equipment 3 Manufacturer
FatShark RC Vision Systems
Equipment 3 Model Number
5.8Ghz 250mWvtx
Equipment 3 No. Of Units
18
Equipment 4 Experimental
No
Equipment 4 Manufacturer
SpiroNet Antenna
Equipment 4 Model Number
RH-SMA
Equipment 4 No. Of Units
8
Equipment 5 Experimental
No
Equipment 5 Manufacturer
SpiroNet Antenna
Equipment 5 Model Number
LH-SMA
Equipment 5 No. Of Units
8
Equipment 6 Experimental
No
Equipment 6 Manufacturer
Circular Wireless
Equipment 6 Model Number
Heliaxial58
Equipment 6 No. Of Units
8
Special Temporary Authority application - Purpose of Operation
Please explain the purpose of operation:
Amateur RC model quadcopter aircraft flying and racing using air to ground 5.8 GHz video transmission systems. We would like to experiment with a new a approach to large scale group FPV (first person view) quadcopter flying and racing. Currently the problem is most FPV pilots do not hold HAM licenses, and the available frequencies are restrictive to only having 3-4 pilots in the air at one time. We also have a mismatch of transmitter powers, and varying types of antennas. This creates a many safety issues for FPV flying. The system we are proposing is to use diversity receivers with directional antennas pointing specifically at the field. With each transmitter at the same power output (between 25mw and 250mw), we can space each racer 20Mhz apart, and using Right-hand and Left-hand polarized antennas, we can get up to 8-12 racers in the air at one time, safely and efficiently. The Frequencies are 12Mhz off the top and bottom of the HAM frequencies, so other than the power output issue, most of the system is already compliant, and is of low enough power not to impact any other near by transmission operations outside of Kualoa Ranch. The intended outcome of this system is to help define a better more organized approach to any organization wishing to hold FPV/Drone races in the future. This would include any official AMA races and the numerous drone racing leagues that are rapidly appearing all over the US.
Special Temporary Authority application - Requested Period of Operation