Historic Aircraft Recovery Corp. v. Wrecked and Abandoned Voight F4U-1 Corsair Aircraft

294 F. Supp. 2d 132, 2004 AMC 625 (2003)

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Historic Aircraft Recovery Corp. v. Wrecked and Abandoned Voight F4U-1 Corsair Aircraft

United States District Court for the District of Maine
294 F. Supp. 2d 132, 2004 AMC 625 (2003)

CS

Facts

During World War II, two military planes (defendants) flown by British military pilots took off from a United States military base in Maine for a training mission. The planes collided above Sebago Lake, a large, deep lake located entirely within Maine. The planes crashed into the lake, and neither the pilots nor the planes were ever recovered. Almost 60 years later, a plane-salvage company, Historic Aircraft Recovery Corp. (Historic Aircraft) (plaintiff) claimed to have located at least one of the planes resting 200 feet deep in the lake. Historic Aircraft brought an in rem action in federal court under admiralty jurisdiction, seeking permission to raise the planes and assert both salvage rights and title to them. The State of Maine intervened in the case and claimed, subject to the potential rights of the United States and the United Kingdom, that the planes were the property of the state, were of archeological and historical significance, and must be left undisturbed and preserved. The United Kingdom also intervened, seeking to prevent the disturbance of the military grave site of its lost pilots.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Singal, J.)

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