Alabama. Dept. of Aeronautics.

The Alabama State Aviation Commission was established in 1931 to encourage aviation and to regulate the aviation industries within the state. The commission was later renamed the Alabama Department of Aeronautics and one of its responsibilities was to survey, layout, and map state landing fields.

Authorities:

Acts of Ala. 1931. Birmingham: Birmingham Printing Company, 1931.

Acts of Ala. 1935. Birmingham: Birmingham Printing Company, 1935.

Acts of Ala. 1943. Birmingham: Birmingham Printing Company, 1943.

Acts of Ala. 1945. Birmingham: Birmingham Printing Company, 1945.

Ala. Aviation Commission Annual Report, 1944. Wetumpka: Wetumpka Printing Co., 1944.

Ala. Dept. of Aeronautics Annual Report, 1983-84. Montgomery: Dept. of Aeronautics, 1984.

Ala. Government Manual. Sixth edition. University of Ala.: Ala. Law Institute, 1982.

Markley, Anne Ethelyn. Author Headings for the Official Publications of the State of Ala. Chicago: American Library Association, 1948.

The Ala. Dept. of Aeronautics was established by the legislature in 1945 July to supervise all phases of civil aeronautics in Ala. and to encourage and promote aeronautical safety. Earlier bodies which exercised this or similar functions were the State Aviation Commission (1931-1935), the State Aviation Commission (1935-1943), and the Ala. Aviation Commission (1943-1945) (Acts of Ala. 1945, No. 402, P. 620).

The State Aviation Commission was established by the legislature in 1931 July to provide for the encouragement of aviation and the regulation of aeronautical industries in the state (Acts of Ala. 1931, No. 739, P. 845).

The Commission consisted of one member known as the State Aviation Commissioner, who was appointed by the Governor to a four-year term. It was the responsibility of the Commissioner to register and issue permits for each pilot and aircraft operating in the state and to enforce the Air Commerce Regulations and Air Traffic Rules of the Air Commerce Act of 1926 (Acts of Ala. 1931, No. 739, p. 847).

The Commission issued three types of permits to pilots: Transport; Limited Commerical Private Flyers Industrial; and Student Flyer. The owners of aircraft were required to register with the Commission, proving that each aircraft was structurally sound and aerodynamically safe. The Commission honored the licenses of pilots and aircraft registered by the U.S. Dept. of Commerce, and had no authority over pilots engaged in interstate commerce or travel (Acts of Ala. 1931, No. 739, pp. 847-8).

It was also the duty of the State Aviation Commission to foster and encourage aviation in the state; to encourage the establishment of aeronautical industries; to survey, layout and map state airways; to encourage the establishment of air navigation facilities in the state; to consult with and advise municipalities concerning the location, establishment, construction, operation and management of airports, intermediate landing fields and other air navigation facilities; and to investigate and ascertain the causes of all accidents in the state involving aircraft (Acts of Ala. 1931, No. 739, p. 848).

The Commission was required to submit to the Governor each year a report containing a summary of its proceedings and an itemized statement of all revenues and expenditures made by the Commission (Acts of Ala. 1931, No. 739, p. 847).

In 1935 Sept. the State Aviation Commission was placed under the authority of the State Highway Dept., and was also referred to as the "Aviation Division." The purpose of the Commission remained intact: to promote and regulate aeronautics in the state (Acts of Ala. 1935, No. 493, p. 1049).

The Commission was composed of five members appointed by the Governor: one chosen from among the fixed-base operators of the state, who held a pilot's license of the grade of Transport, was licensed by the U.S. Dept. of Commerce, Bureau of Air Commerce, for at least three years, and had at least one thousand certified hours in the air; one chosen from the private airplane owners of the state, licensed by the Dept. of Commerce as a private pilot with not less than five hundred hours in the air; one chosen from the airport managers of the state; one who held an officially recognized pilot's rating in the U.S. armed forces; and one member selected from the state-at-large. The Governor designated one member to serve as chairman, who, as such, served as an ex-officio member of the State Highway Commission (Acts of Ala. 1935, No. 493, p. 1049).

The Commission was authorized to employ as a full-time executive, a Director of Aeronautics. The Director had to be at least twenty-seven years old, a pilot licensed by the U.S. Dept. of Commerce, Bureau of Aeronautics, with at least one thousand hours in the air.

It was the responsibility of the State Aviation Commission to provide for the promotion, encouragement, development and regulation of air navigation, air navigation aids and facilities, pilots and aircraft; to provide for the survey, location, mapping and development of state airways and airway facilities; to provide for the registration and issuance of permits to operators, aircraft and pilots, and the suspension and revocation of those permits; and to provide for the encouragement of the location in the state of aeronautical industries (Acts of Ala. 1935, No. 493, p. 1046).

The sum of $15,000 was initially appropriated out of the General Fund and designated the "State Aviation Fund" to meet the expenses of the Commission. The Commission was also authorized to receive grants, donations, gifts, and loans of funds, monies, and/or equipment, materials and services from the federal, state, county and/or municipal government and/or their agencies, or from private individuals or companies. However, no funds could be dispersed without the approval of the Governor (Acts of Ala. 1935, No. 493, pp. 1056-7).

The Commission was required to hold at least one public meeting each year. Special meetings could be called by the Governor or the chairman. Three members constituted a quorum (Acts of Ala. 1935, No. 493, p. 1050).

In 1943 June the legislature removed the Commission from the authority of the State Highway Dept. and re-established it as the "Alabama Aviation Commission" (Acts of Ala. 1943, No. 248, p. 208).

The Commission was composed of five members appointed by the Governor. Three members constituted a quorum. The Commission was authorized to employ a Director to serve as chief executive officer and supervise all administrative and technical activities. It was the duty of the Director to attend all the meetings of the Commission and to act as its secretary; to appoint experts and special assistants upon the approval of the Commission; to recommend rules and regulations for the improvement of aeronautics in Ala.; and to encourage the interchange of information relative to the improvement of aeronautical services between the Ala. Aviation Commission and similar agencies of the states and the federal government (Acts of Ala. 1943, No. 248, p. 210).

The Commission was responsible for exercising supervision and safety controls over all airports, landing strips and air navigation facilities, and for making rules and regulations necessary for the promotion of air traffic safety. The Commission cooperated closely with municipalities to secure funding for airport construction and designed and maintained landing strips and air beacons. Working with the Works Progress Administration and Army Air Bases in Ala., the Commission surveyed and placed several hundred markers on highways and the roofs of buildings to facilitate air navigation (Acts of Ala. 1943, No. 248, p. 212; Ala. Aviation Commission 1944 Annual Report, p. 9).

The Commission established rules and regulations relative to the issuance of licenses to pilots and the inspection and registration of aircraft. The Commission cooperated with the Civil Aeronautics Administration and the Ala. State Board of Education to formulate aeronautics courses for use in some of the state's colleges (Ala. Aviation Commission 1944 Annual Report, p. 17).

The Commission submitted an annual report containing a summary of its activities as well as recommendations for improvements of aeronautics in Ala.

In 1945 July the legislature abolished the Commission and created in its place the Dept. of Aeronautics (Acts of Ala. 1945, No. 402, p. 620).

At the same time was created the Ala. Aeronautics Commission to serve as the governing body of the Dept. The Commission is composed of seven members: the Director of the Dept. of Public Safety, the Director of the State Highway Dept., and five members appointed by the Governor, two of whom must be experienced pilots having not less than two hundred hours in the air.

The Commission exercises general supervision over all phases of civil aeronautics within the state. It promotes the development of aviation within the state and may develop a statewide system of airports. It approves airport sites within the state, licenses airports, and revokes licenses for cause. The Commission may own, construct, and maintain airports, and develop aeronautics and aeronautical facilities. It provides state funds for the construction of airports and provides engineering and other technical assistance to local governments. The Commission provides for air marking, investigates aircraft accidents, and establishes rules and regulations necessary to carry out its purpose (Ala. Government Manual, p. 74).

The Commission, with the approval of the Governor, appoints a Director to serve as chief executive officer. The Director attends all Commission meetings, and may by written order of the Commission exercise any of the powers and duties vested in the Commission. The Director handles all administrative affairs of the Dept., such as signing payrolls and requisitions, and employs all personnel, subject to the approval of the Commission (Ala. Government Manual, p. 75).

The Dept. of Aeronautics is composed of the following divisions:

Alabama. Dept. of Aeronautics. Administrative Division.

Authority:

Ala. Government Manual, p. 75.

Alabama. Dept. of Aeronautics. Engineering and Construction Division.

Alabama. Dept. of Aeronautics. Fiscal Division.

Alabama. Dept. of Aeronautics. Aeronautical Division.

The Dept. receives annual appropriations from a portion of the excise tax on aviation gasoline (Ala. Government Manual, p. 74).