Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regulations and the Airline Deregulation Act (ADA) preempt state law if the claim involves a carrier’s rates, routes, and services.[1] Violation of FAA regulations have been held to be negligence per se.[2]
Some courts have held that airlines as common carriers owe the highest degree of care.[3] An airline is a common carrier if it holds itself out as willing to accept all paying passengers.[4] The duty of care is nondelegable and the airline may be liable for the negligence of others, such as manufacturers.[5]
This higher duty of care may not apply to airport facilities such as approaches and exists, for which the duty has been held to be ordinary care.
[1] See Hodges v. Delta Airlines, 4 F.3d 350 (5th Cir. 1993)(Federal law applies to injury claim by passenger struck in the head by bottle that fell out of overhead compartment.). But see Chouest v. American Airlines, Inc., 839 F.Supp. 412, (E.D. La. 1993)(Ground transportation provided as part of vacation package was not part of air carriers “services” for federal preemption purposes.); Fenn v. American Airlines, Inc., 839 F.Supp 1218 (S.D. Miss. 1993)(Claims for false imprisonment and slander by passenger detained by airline on suspicion of stealing another passenger’s ring were not preempted by federal law).
[2] See Gatenby v. Altoona Aviation Corp., 268 F.Supp. 599 (W.D. Pa. 1967), aff’d, 407 F.2d 443 (3d Cir. 1969).
[3] Kasanoff v. Embry-Riddle, 157 Fla. 677, 26 So. 889 (1946); Croce Bromley Corp., 623 F.2d 488 (8th Cir. 1959); Cattaro v. Northwest Airlines, Inc., 236 F. Supp. 889 (E.D. Va. 1964).
[4] Arrow Aviation, Inc. v. Moore, 266 F.2d 488 (8th Cir. 1959).
[5] De Vito v. United Air Lines, 98 F.Supp. 88 (E.D.N.Y. 1951).