Pan American World Airways, Inc. v. Air Line Pilots Ass'n, International

22 Misc. 2d 148, 206 N.Y.S.2d 98, 1960 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 3088
CourtNew York Supreme Court
DecidedApril 29, 1960
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 22 Misc. 2d 148 (Pan American World Airways, Inc. v. Air Line Pilots Ass'n, International) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering New York Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Pan American World Airways, Inc. v. Air Line Pilots Ass'n, International, 22 Misc. 2d 148, 206 N.Y.S.2d 98, 1960 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 3088 (N.Y. Super. Ct. 1960).

Opinion

William C. Hecht, Jr., J.

This motion seeks a temporary-injunction against a threatened strike. Plaintiff Pan American W or Id Airways, Inc. (“Pan American ”), a New Y ork corporation, is an air carrier as defined in the Federal Aviation Act of 1958, as amended (U. S. Code, tit. 49, § 1301 et seq.). It holds certificates of public convenience and necessity pursuant to that Act, under which certificates it operates an air line system for the carriage by air of passengers, property and mail in overseas and foreign commerce. Its routes extend over more than 70,000 miles; its annual revenues are over 300 million dollars; and it claims to transport approximately one third of all overseas air passengers and one fourth of all overseas air and sea passengers, to and from the United States.

Pan American is a “ carrier ” as defined in the Railway Labor Act (U. S. Code, tit. 45, § 181). As such it and its employees and their bargaining agents are subject to all of the provisions affecting railroad labor in sections 151, 152 and 154-163 of that Act (U. S. Code, tit. 45, § 182), as well as the provisions of sections 183-185 affecting air line labor.

Defendant Air Line Pilots Association, International (“ Association ”) is an unincorporated association. It is the duly designated bargaining agent pursuant to title 45 of the United States Code (§ 151, subd. Sixth; § 152) of all domestic employees of Pan American included within the craft of air line pilots (exclusive of supervisory pilots). The individual defendants (“ Pilots ”) are air line pilots who may be scheduled for flight duties on piston aircraft.

The first issue presented is the jurisdiction of this court over the person of defendant Association.

Personal service of the summons and complaint was not made upon Association’s president or treasurer, as required by section 13 of the General Associations Law. It was served on Association’s regional vice-president, who is alleged by plaintiff to be the person in charge of the business in which the Association is engaged here. Pan American contends this service is valid under section 229-b of the Civil Practice Act.

The answer is that Amon v. Moreschi (296 N. Y. 395) unequivocally holds that this section does not apply to unincorporated associations. Substitute service on such a defendant may be effected only by court order, as provided in section 230 of the Civil Practice Act.

Pan American seeks to distinguish that case on the ground that the courts below held that the association was not doing business in the State. The Court of Appeals, however, did not [151]*151place its decision on any such ground. On the contrary, by answering in the negative the first and ninth questions certified on this appeal, the court explicitly held that 1 ‘ section 229-b of the Civil Practice Act was not intended to have application to actions against unincorporated associations ’ ’ (p. 401).

The motion is therefore denied as to defendant Association, because of lack of jurisdiction over its person.

The summons and complaint and the moving papers were personally served on 125 pilots. The other pilot defendants were not served. Pan American urges, nevertheless, that they may be enjoined because this is a class action, wherein those served may defend for the benefit of all, citing section 195 of the Civil Practice Act and Northwestern Tel. Co. v. Western Union Tel. Co. (197 Misc. 1075).

In the cited case, Walter, J., held that the rights of stockholders of a corporation, inter sese, could be determined in an action where- a representative number were made parties on behalf of all. No case has been cited or found which extends this principle of representation to the drastic remedy of injunctions, with the resultant exposure to contempt. I see no justification for enjoining a person who has been given no notice o-f the proceeding and no opportunity to defend himself, merely because others whose interests may be identical were given such notice and opportunity.

The motion is therefore denied as to all defendant pilots who were not personally served with process within the State, because of lack of jurisdiction over their persons.

The points at issue between Pan American and the 125 defendant pilots who were personally served may be briefly stated.

An agreement (“ the Agreement ”) was signed on February 4, 1959 between Pan American and Association, as the bargaining agent of Pilots. The Agreement was to be in full force and effect at least until August 4, 1960.

The Agreement provides that Pan American shall make every effort to maintain a monthly flight time not to exceed 85 hours, and that a pilot shall not be scheduled in excess of 255 hours during a calendar quarter. A separate memorandum of understanding provides that on jet aircraft, a pilot shall not be scheduled for duty on the flight deck in excess of 8 hours in any 24-hour period.

No such restriction appears in the agreement regarding duty on the flight deck of piston aircraft, the subject matter of this action. Pan American alleges that under past practice the only restriction on the hours of flight deck duty on piston air[152]*152craft was the regulation of the Federal Aviation Agency, limiting such assignments to 12 hours in every 24-hour period. Pan American alleges further that when the memorandum of understanding was made limiting duty on jet aircraft, Association made similar demands regarding piston aircraft, but withdrew them.

The foregoing allegations are not denied by Pilots. They urge two answering contentions: 1. When the Agreement was executed, the Civil Air Regulations provided that ‘ ‘ two pilots shall remain at the controls at all times while the aircraft is taking off, landing, and while en route, except when the absence of one is necessary in connection with Ids regular duties or when he is replaced by an [authorized] person ” (Code of Fed. Reg., tit. 14, § 41.62).

As Pan American applied these regulations, if the crew consisted of three pilots, the captain was required to be at the controls only at certain periods, and the first officer could be relieved when another fully qualified pilot was assigned by the captain. Further, Pan American’s instructions required that except in emergencies only two qualified pilots be assigned to duty at the controls, thus allowing relief to the third pilot.

After the Agreement was executed, the Civil Air Regulations were amended to require flight crew members to remain at their stations at all times, and to require them to keep their seat belts fastened when at their respective stations. Therefore, Pan American issued new instructions requiring all flight crew members to remain at their respective stations with seat belts fastened throughout the flight, except of course for emergency relief.

The provision that only two qualified pilots need be assigned to duty was deleted, therefore requiring all three pilots to be on duty at all times, again except for necessary relief.

Pan American’s reply to this is that the foregoing represent no changes of substance in flight procedure.

2.

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22 Misc. 2d 148, 206 N.Y.S.2d 98, 1960 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 3088, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/pan-american-world-airways-inc-v-air-line-pilots-assn-international-nysupct-1960.