§ 247 — Examination of wrecked aircraft before destruction or removal

§ 247. Examination of wrecked aircraft before destruction or removal.\nWhen an aircraft falls or lands in a wrecked condition or is wrecked by\nthe fall or in landing and an occupant thereof is killed or severely\ninjured thereby or escapes death or injury by the use of a parachute,\nneither such aircraft nor any part of it shall be destroyed or removed\nbefore the expiration of twenty-four hours thereafter without the\npermission of an inspector of the federal aviation agency or an\ninvestigator of the civil aeronautics board or a member of the state\npolice or of a sheriff or regular deputy sheriff; and if, before it is\ndestroyed or removed, such an inspector or member of the state police or\nsheriff or deputy sheriff shall appear at the scene of the wreck for the\npurpose of examining the aircraft it shall not be destroyed or removed\nuntil the examination is completed provided the examination be completed\nwithin forty-eight hours of the time that the aircraft fell or landed.\nThis section shall not prevent or postpone the destruction or removal of\na wrecked aircraft lying in a public street or highway in a position\nthat causes a blockade of traffic, or lying in a navigable waterway in a\nposition that impedes or imperils navigation, or which lands or falls on\na building or structure, or in a case where the immediate destruction or\nremoval of the aircraft is necessary to prevent injury to persons; but\nsuch necessity in the case last mentioned, shall be a matter of defense\nin any prosecution for a violation of this section. A person who\ndestroys or removes, or causes to be destroyed or removed, a wrecked\naircraft in violation of the provisions of this section is guilty of a\nmisdemeanor.\n