How the Air Commerce Act of 1926 impacted airports designs - Term Paper Example

Reshaping and improving the civilian air transportation has been one of the main focal points of all administrations and governments. Since the U.S. aviation was not properly developed in the early 19th century because there was no rule applying on who should fly the plane and who should guarantee the passengers’ safety, there was great need for the federal government to make such regulations that would best cater to the security requirements of the civilians in order to gain public’s trust.

Thus, to build new safety standards and maintain them to the highest level, to reduce the risks of air accidents, and to bring the best out of the commercial aviation, there was need for some federal maneuver in this regard. Hence, an Act regarding aviation safety was passed on May 20, 1926. Signed by the then President of America, Calvin Coolidge, the Air Commerce Act of 1926 is regarded as the beginning of air aviation’s revolution and basically defines rules and regulations for the development of airmen, air craft, air traffic and navigational facilities.

According to this Act, all aircraft should be properly checked and certified in order to be suitable for flight. Aircraft was required to be marked on the outside of their bodies so that they could be identified easily. It was the responsibility of the Department of Commerce’s Aeronautic Branch to have the airmen pass through formal physical tests and aeronautical knowledge tests so as to assess their skills. They were issued licenses. The Act emphasized that the federal government should take measures to build more airports according to the most modern designs.

The federal government was also instructed through this Act to devise strategies regarding aircraft altitude separation. One main focal point of this Act was to build and maintain new airways. Navigational facilities were also required to be improved which included, for example, the enhancement of aeronautical radio communication for improving air navigation. “Under this act, the government supplied money for air navigation facilities so that the routes would become safer to fly, day and night” (U.S. Centennial of Flight Commission, 2010).

The Act put forward new and practical safety rules for passengers. Accidents were to be investigated properly and all evidences recorded. “The Civil Aeronautics Act of 1926, in both its content and enactment, was a triumph of Coolidge’s philosophy of government and his often-overlooked political skill”, says Charles Downs who is a career archivist with the National Archives and Records Administration in Washington, DC (2001). The Act made great beneficial impacts upon the airport design, development, operations, and funding sources.

Initially there were many extremists who criticized the bill but most people regarded it as a great benefit to American commercial aviation. The development of airports is a true example of government caring for its people’s safety. One one hand, it provided the federal government with power of making regulations; and on the other, it was practical enough to be applied in the aviation industry. The results made the United States recognize how much potential the aviation had which was going unused before the implementation of such regulations.

The improved aviation operations enabled the aircraft to go on extended flights which it did not before this Act because there were more accidents in the early nineteenth century and no detailed investigation was performed. But after 1926, passengers felt comfortable enough to fly and the aviation became a flourishing source of journey and income. This development made the Post Office to invest in the aviation because it wanted larger planes now to carry more airmail. The Act itself, its implementation and the results, all are very important if we look at it from an aviation manager’