This Day in FAA History: May 19th

Full FAA Chronology at this link.
19300519: Postmaster General Walter Folger Brown held the first of a series of meetings with representatives of the large commercial airlines to discuss air mail routes to be awarded under the Watres Act (see April 29, 1930). All but two of the twenty-two air mail contracts awarded under the act went to airlines in attendance at the meetings, which were subsequently attacked as “spoils conferences.” (See February 9, 1934.)
19390519: The Civil Aeronautics Authority announced issuance of a certificate of public convenience and necessity to Pan American Airways authorizing transatlantic air transport service of two round trips per week. Before any passengers were to be carried, Pan American was required to complete a minimum of five trips as proving flights (see June 28, 1939); however, Pan American began the first regular transatlantic airplane mail service on May 20.
19660519: According to a Senate Committee on Aeronautical and Space Sciences staff report entitled, “Policy Planning for Aeronautical Research and Development,” civil aeronautics was served by technology in a haphazard manner. For civil aviation to advance as rapidly as technology will allow, the report recommended: taking civil requirements into greater account during military aircraft development planning; Federal underwriting of the increasing financial risks in civil aeronautical development; providing tax credits and other incentives to the aeronautical industry; and carrying out of transportation systems planning on the Federal level.
19770519: FAA issued a rule requiring each air carrier to obtain approval by year’s end for its system of gathering and disseminating information on adverse weather that might affect safety. Current rules already required airlines to supply flight crews with pertinent weather data, but contained no provision for FAA approval of these weather information systems. In proposing this rule in a notice published on November 15, 1976, FAA cited factors that included an accident at St. Louis (see July 23, 1973). Following this proposal, the need for such a rule was highlighted by an accident in Georgia (see April 4, 1977).
19870519: USAir absorbed Pacific Southwest Airlines. On October 30, DOT announced its approval for USAir’s proposed acquisition of Piedmont Airlines. Formal merger of the two airlines’ parent companies occurred on August 5, 1989, and full integration of Piedmont Airlines into USAir was not completed until February 1, 1990.
19970519: Under an interim final rule, FAA began collecting fees for overflight services, as scheduled – having, on the previous Friday, turned down requests from the International Air Transportation Association and the Air Transportation Association of Canada for a 90 day delay. A U.S. Court of Appeals decision in January 1998 determined that FAA’s calculation of fees was inconsistent with the statute and prohibited the collection of the fees. (See March 20, 1997; June 5, 2000.)
19970519: Department of Transportation and Interior Department established a National Park Overflights Working Group to develop a plan to ensure preservation of natural quiet in the parks. The group would exist for 100 days after the date of its initial meeting, scheduled for May 20-21, 1997. Its membership included representatives of the aviation industry, parks, and conservation groups. (See May 12, 1997.)
20000519: FAA announced grant awards to three companies totaling about $8.6 million to develop explosives detectors. The new systems would be used to scan checked baggage at smaller air carrier stations that did not need the high baggage-processing rate of current systems. The grants provided $7.5 million to InVision Technologies Inc., of Newark, California; $757,432 to L-3 Communications of New York City; and $313,309 to PerkinElmer Inc., of Wellesley, Massachusetts; for the delivery of prototypes within 15 months. The grant project was designed to expedite the development of low-cost certified explosives detection systems. (See January 5, 2000; July 19, 2000.)
20160519: EgyptAir Flight 804 en route from Paris to Cairo crashed about 260 miles from Cairo. All 66 passengers and crew died. Black box data indicated there was a fire inside the Airbus 320 at the time of the crash.
20170519: The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit struck down a FAA rule requiring owners of large recreational drones and other model aircraft to registers their devices. FAA had announced the rule in 2015 in response to growing reports of drones flying near aircraft and airports. The Court ruled that federal law prohibited FAA from issuing rules and regulations pertaining to model aircraft. (See February 15, 2015; December 12, 2017.)