Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1921-08-20
LAWS TO GOVERN
AERONAUTlCS TO
BE DISCUSSED
American Bar Association
to T Up Question at
Annual Convention.

Cincinnati. Aug. 20.-One Of the
,most interesting and unusual features
to be introduced and discusseo at
the convention Of the American Bar
association, to be held here Aug. 30j
to Sept. 2, will be the matter OF
recommending the enactment Of con-
stitutional law to bring about the
proper solution Of the demands Of the
a%eronautics.
From Special Committee.
The Recommendation that such
action be taken comes from Q special
committee on the law of aviation,
which in its report to the executive
committee of the association ,ex-
presses its hope that in the enactment
most careful preliminary ~considera-
ton be given to the constitutional
features of any proposed legislation,
to the end that 1t may be determined
whether the proper development and
regulation of aeronautics does not re-
quire a con litutional amendment
confering complete jurisdiction; over
aeronautics upon the United States
through it's appropriate departments.
instead of attempting, to adopt de-
vices Of questionable constitutional
ty to make existing national powers
apply to this new branch of human.
activity. J
The report further states that
neither the public nor the legal pro-
mands Of the situation. There is a
prevalent tendency, it Is asserted. to
regard the problem as primarily, il
not exclusively. a military problem;
! whereas In fact it is primarily a
commercial and economic problem,
with grave Incidental features
which lie in the domain Of juris-
,>~,,l1--~ - II xy ~ 1-I 1on,o~J ma
aid Of jurists n lawyers.
The two fundamental juristic prob
lens Of aeronautfcs in this country
are emphasized by the committee as
follows:
Whether control should be exerted
! by the national government: ano
whether the power of such control
should be conferred by constitutional
amendment, or seized under the
powers. l
The committee after thorough in
.vestigation finds and will report that
the endorsements arising from the
present state of the law may be
conveniently contributed to the fol-
lowing specific difficulties in existing
laws; the uncertainty as to what the
law is governing; the lack of any uni
form laws; the conflict of laws: the
insuficiency Of law; the hazard Of
u~nregulated flight; the hazard of UNI
defined responsibility; the hazard Of
personnel in unlicensed or unequipped
or unadequately equipped pilots; the
hazard of deficient air wOrthiness of
aircraft Together these make up a
bunch of uncertainties and a bunch
of endorsements which make the
proper conduct Of the business of air
craft insurance extremely difficult if
not impossible.
Still in Infancy.
The committee expresses the belief
that to a constitutional
regulation of air service and at the
same time .sadmonishes that the
greatest care should be taken to make
h fact that the art of flying Is. still
in its infancy. The committee also
submits a tentative constitutional
amendment, suggested by Major Eliza
c. johnson of the United States
army, legal adviser to the air service,
as follows, ~
Congress shall have power to pro-
vide for regulating the use for air
travel of all air space owe h earth
and within~th borders Of the United
States and it's territories, and all coun-
tries over which the United States has
jurisdiction, including the three mile
limit on the seas; and to provide for
regulations of landing fields, a fixed
code Of signals, and signs for the
navigation of the af and the landing
Of aircraft.
Congress shall have further power
to provide for the enforcement of said
regulations and establish air admiral
ty courts, or grant to the exisEng
courts the jurisdiction of the admir-
atty law of the air, which Jurisdiction
shall INCLUDE the punishment Of all
crimes committed on aircraft
whether in the air or in port at land.
ing fields, and over all civil cases
over which admiralty courts now, or
hereafter, generally have jurisdiction
which have their source in air
travel" .rts
The committee adds that the time
has certainly ONE when it can nc
longer be said that this is not a sub
ject of general interest, or about
which there car be any doubt as to
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