This Day in FAA History: July 30th

Full FAA Chronology at this link.
19470730: The President signed Public Law 289, an amendment to the Surplus Property Act of 1944, to help speed the conversion to civil use of airports, airport facilities, and aviation equipment no longer needed by the military. Recognizing that maintenance of the airports would require substantial funds, the law authorized transfer of surplus property to develop sources of revenue from non-aviation businesses at such airports.
19810730: In San Diego Unified Port District v. Gianturco, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit struck down an attempt by the State of California to impose more stringent noise rules at Lindbergh Field than those imposed by Lindbergh’s proprietor. The court’s decision included a rationale for the “Burbank exception” (see May 14, 1973). Noting that the U.S. Supreme Court had held in Griggs v. Allegheny that airport proprietors can be held liable for the noise produced by aircraft using their facilities (see March 5, 1962), the Court observed that “fairness dictates that they must also have power to insulate themselves from that liability.” At the same time, the Court set forth criteria that determine airport proprietorship, including “ownership, operation, promotion, and the ability to acquire necessary approach easements.” If a local or state entity possessed these characteristics, then it also possessed power to regulate noise. In the case of Lindbergh Field, however, the State of California did not possess these characteristics, having entrusted them to the San Diego Unified Port District.
On September 23, 1981, in Santa Monica Airport Association v. City of Santa Monica, the same Court reaffirmed the “Burbank exception” by upholding aircraft-noise abatement ordinances and a night curfew on takeoffs and landings imposed by the City of Santa Monica, which owned and operated the local airport. In reaching this decision, the Court again emphasized that “municipal airport owners needed some means of limiting their liability under Griggs.” The Court did strike down, however, a categorical ban on all jet aircraft as violating the Commerce and Equal Protection clauses of the Constitution. (See August 24, 1983.)
19920730: FAA excluded general aviation aircraft from the rule that all transponders installed after July 1, 1992, be Mode S transponders (see January 29, 1987).
20030730: FAA dropped an ATR42-300 regional transport airplane 50 feet to the concrete below as part of its efforts to collect the empirical data needed to set crashworthiness standards for commuter aircraft. Data collected from this and previous tests at the William J. Hughes Technical Center would help researchers to assess the impact response characteristics of the airframe structure, seats, overhead stowage bins, fuel tanks, and the potential for occupant injury.
20040730: FAA extended the date – from December 6, 2004 to December 16, 2008 – for operators to comply with special maintenance program requirements for transport airplane fuel tank systems. The action was intended to allow operators enough time to incorporate revisions into their maintenance programs, after having learned of required fuel tank systems maintenance programs from those who hold design approval. (See November 23, 2002; November 14, 2005.)
20100730: FAA announced that Mexico was not in compliance with international safety standards set by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), following an assessment of the country’s civil aviation authority. As a result, the United States downgraded Mexico from a Category 1 to Category 2 rating. As part of the FAA’s International Aviation Safety Assessment (IASA) program, the agency assessed the civil aviation authorities of all countries with air carriers that operate or have applied to fly to the United States and made that information available to the public. The assessments determined whether or not foreign civil aviation authorities met ICAO safety standards, not FAA regulations. With the IASA Category 2 rating, Mexican air carriers could not establish new service to the United States, although they could maintain existing service. December 1, 2010, FAA announced that Mexico again complied with international safety standards based on the results of a November FAA review of Mexico’s civil aviation authority. Mexico now had a Category 1 rating. (See August 25, 2008; August 23, 2010.)
20210730: FAA requested applications for air traffic controller positions. The announcement closed on August 2, 2021. During that time, FAA released campaigns encouraging women and minorities to apply. For the first time FAA asked for people with video gaming skills, because the skills needed for air traffic control were similar to those used for gaming.