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1 Air Com. Bull. 1 (1929-1930)

handle is hein.journals/aicmrcb1 and id is 1 raw text is: DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE AERONAUTICS BRANCH AIR COMMERCE BULLETIN ISSUED SEMIMONTHLY Vol. 1 Washington, July 1, 1929 No. 1 Need for uniform State legislation. United States air transport routes, a table and map. More air travelogues, by Frederick L. Hoffman, LL.D. Analysis of accidents in civil aeronautics for 1928. July in the air, a chronicle of early days. Status of aircraft radio research, a review of the year. American aircraft exports double. Committee on hangar fire tests. Airway survey and construction progress. Airport and airway changes. Certification of private lights. Proposed airports. Licenses and identifications, airplane and engine approvals. Air mail news and statistics. Airway operators, a list. NEED FOR UNIFORM STATE LEGISLATION Under the provisions of the air com- merce act, the basic Federal law govern- ing the regulation of civil aeronautics, the United States Department of Com- merce can only impose the licensing requirements upon aircraft and air- men engaged in interstate air com- merce. It can, and does, however, extend the licensing privileges to intra- state owners and operators of aircraft. The result has been that a great major- ity of the latter have found it desirable to take advantage of the privilege, by voluntarily applying for licenses, which carries with it the inspection of air- craft and examination of airmen as to their airworthiness and competency, respectively. Also, under the provisions of the same act, unlicensed aircraft and airmen, engaged in air commerce in any way whatsoever, are obliged to confine their operations to the borders of a given State, in which there are no limiting State laws. The results are more or less obvious. Thus far at least not all aircraft and airmen are airworthy or competent. Some are disapproved for various reasons when they are inspected or examined by the field representatives of the Depart- ment of Commerce. In such cases there is but one alternative to either acquiring airworthy aircraft or im- proving their ability as airmen, and that is to resort to intrastate opera- tion in a State having no law, or the 579E2-29--1 incorrect law, in the premises. And, unfortunately, it is this class of aircraft and airmen which has been contribut- ing in a large measure to the recent aircraft accidents with their resulting injuries, fatal and otherwise, to both passengers and pilots. The remedy under the existing Fed- eral law requires suitable State legisla- tion-legislation which, among other things, must take into c6nsideration the imperative need for uniformity throughout the United States, in the matter of airworthiness of aircraft, competency of airmen, and most par- ticularly in the operation of aircraft in the air. Once an aircraft is in the air there can be no distinction between its interstate or intrastate character. It must be equally airworthy, the pilot must be equally competent, and the same rules as to passing, crossing, signaling, landing, etc., must be rigidly observed. Inasmuch as there can be but one standard of airworthiness, only a limited range of piloting ability, and no variation in rules, then it would seem obvious that State laws dealing with regulation should provide require- ments identical with those of the Fed- eral law. There are, apparently, several ways in which the required uniformity may be accomplished. The simplest seems to be the enactment of a State law which would, in its effect, require all intra- state aircraft and airmen to be Feder- ally licensed. This at once sets up the identical requirements, and obviates the necessity of a state inspection sys- tem with its attendant difficulties, com- plications, and expense. The Air Traf- fic Rules of the Commerce Department are universally effective-that is, they are equally applicable to interstate and intrastate operations in the air-but experience has indicated that local en- forcement of penalties for violations is desirable. Therefore, if the State con- stitution does not permit the adoption of the Federal Air Traffic Rules by reference, then it would doubtless be in order to incorporate them in the State law, by authorizing a State official to Reproduction by Permission of Buffalo & Erie County Public Library Buffalo, NY

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