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Regulating a Global Technology within the American Federalist System: The Ideological Origins of the 1926 Air Commerce Act by Sean H. Seyer A dissertation submitted to the Graduate Faculty of Auburn University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Auburn, Alabama May 4, 2014 Keywords: aviation, federalism, International Convention Relating to the Regulation of Aerial Navigation, mental models, Canada, Air Commerce Act Copyright 2014 by Sean H. Seyer Approved by William F. Trimble, Chair, Professor of History Morris L. Bian, Associate Professor of History David C. Carter, Associate Professor of History James R. Hansen, Professor of History Abstract The 1926 Air Commerce Act represented the institutionalization of a specific mental model for aviation regulation within the United States. This dissertation focuses on how individuals and groups responded to three distinct influences—(1) the Constitution’s state/federal separation of powers; (2) the 1919 Convention Relating to the Regulation of Aerial Navigation; and (3) practical aerial experience along the U.S.– Canadian border—to develop a regulatory system that corresponded to America’s particular socio-political traditions. I argue that the development of aviation regulation in the United States, a process previously presented as a solely domestic narrative, can only be fully understood when approached from a global perspective. As a device capable of three-dimensional movement, the airplane possessed the innate ability to undermine state sovereignty. Though pioneering regulatory advocates in the United States believed the airplane’s speed and freedom of movement necessitated federal legislation, states and municipalities turned to their constitutionally-sanctioned police powers to regulate the airplane as early as 1908. The airplane’s use in World War I accentuated the need to constrain this potentially radical technology, but constitutional questions remained. Although the 1919 convention’s ties to the League of Nations precluded official American membership, the regulatory uniformity necessary for international flight resulted in American acceptance of the convention’s principles and norms. I present the idea of “techno-regulatory peer pressure”—the modification of a government’s regulations to correspond to those of another to facilitate the cross-border use of technology—as a means of placing the Air Commerce Act within its appropriate international context. ii Acknowledgments Many individuals helped to shepherd this dissertation throughout its journey from embryotic idea to finished product. The members of my committee, Dr. William Trimble, Dr. Morris Bian, Dr. David Carter, and Dr. James Hansen have all provided strong and continuous intellectual and professional support throughout my graduate career. Dr. David Lucsko graciously offered comments on the early chapters, and both he and Dr. Alan Meyer were always willing to listen to my thoughts and offer constructive feedback. From the first day of my very first seminar, my time at Auburn University’s History Department has been a wonderful and engaging experience. I am truly grateful for the opportunity to grow intellectually and professionally amongst such a group of supportive scholars. Archivists are a historian’s best friend and in many ways the unsung heroes of our craft. I would like to thank David A. Langbert of the National Archives for his assistance in navigating the State Department’s voluminous records. The assistance offered by Richard McCulley and William Davis at the Center for Legislative Archives went beyond all expectations, and I am most appreciative to Bill for helping me sort through various drafts of multiple aviation bills. Through their intimate knowledge of the collection, Matthew Schaefer and Spencer Howard at the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library provided invaluable assistance. Archivists at the Library of Congress, the Smithsonian Institution Archives, and the Library and Archives Canada continuously offered their time and energy to track down documents, and always with a smile. They all deserve a pay raise. iii I came to Alabama knowing not a single soul, and I end my graduate career at Auburn University with a host of life-long friends. I wish to thank Leslie Whatley, Guy Shields, Wade Meadows, and others for always being there and keeping me centered. I am grateful to fellow graduate students Hector and Hesper Montford, Zack Wakefield, Charles Wexler, and others who forced me to socialize. Chris Eklund and Amy Wallhermfechtel were always available to both commensurate with the trials and share the joys of the dissertation process. A special thank you goes to Kristan Christoff, who kept me sane during an intense writing process. To all those who shared their experience, strength, and hope with me throughout the years, thank you. My family has been a source of strength and inspiration. I wish to thank Dennis and Ellen Seyer for fostering an inquisitive mind and always supporting me in all my endeavors. Finally, I want to thank my grandfather, Herbert W. Gruber. By sharing his World War II experiences, he instilled within me an appreciation for history. iv Contents Abstract ......................................................................................................................................... ii Acknowledgments........................................................................................................................ iii Introduction ................................................................................................................................... 1 Chapter 1: The Historical Debate over the Federal Regulation of Transportation ..................... 18 Chapter 2: The Prewar Dialogue and Pioneering Regulations ................................................... 68 Chapter 3: Crafting the Postwar International Civil Aviation Regime ....................................... 90 Chapter 4: The Wilson Administration’s Response to the 1919 Convention ........................... 140 Chapter 5: Delineating the Contours of Federal Regulation ..................................................... 179 Chapter 6: Continuity and Change during the Harding Administration ................................... 204 Chapter 7: Breaking Down the Barriers to Legislative Action ................................................. 256 Chapter 8: Achieving Critical Mass .......................................................................................... 303 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................ 360 Bibliography ............................................................................................................................. 364 v Introduction This dissertation analyzes the domestic and international influences that contributed to the first federal regulation of civil aviation in the United States. President Calvin Coolidge’s May 20, 1926, signature of the Air Commerce Act marked a significant milestone in American aviation history for several reasons: it represented the next step in a dialogue concerning the place of new technologies within America’s constitutional framework that stretched back to the nation’s founding; it began a nearly century-long regulatory relationship between aviation and the federal government; and it delineated the contours of the aerial relationship between the United States and its fellow nations. The 1926 Air Commerce Act represented the institutionalization of a shared mental model that attempted to reconcile the Constitution’s federalist system with the 1919 Convention Relating to the Regulation of Aerial Navigation in light of practical experience along the U.S.-Canadian border. Rather than viewing this foundational document as an imperfect precursor of later legislation such as the 1938 Civil Aeronautics Act, the Federal Aviation Act of 1958, and the Department of Transportation Act of 1966, this study approaches the Air Commerce Act as the culmination of various ideas and influences to provide a better understanding of the forces that shape how governments approach new technologies. The airplane represents a radical technology, which can be defined as any device that undermines traditional notions of security, social norms, and jurisprudence. By allowing movement in three dimensions, the airplane called into question a nation’s ability to secure its borders. As such, it challenged a central element within the concept of sovereignty, the ideological foundation for international relations since the 1648 Peace of 1 Westphalia ended the Thirty Years War. The dual-use nature of aircraft, with their ready conversion from civilian to military use, further affected the established balance of international security. While a member of James Ramsay MacDonald’s coalition government in 1932, prior and future British Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin combined the inability of a sovereign government to prevent aerial intrusions with the airplane’s potential for death and destruction when he famously declared “the bomber will always get through.”1 As the historian Joseph Corn shows, American aviation enthusiasts projected the airplane’s freedom of movement onto society, prophesying profound social changes arising from the miracle of flight. Even after the horror of World War I, this “winged gospel” continued to present the airplane as both a socially constructive and destabilizing force, “an instrument