The Superior Court in Barnstable, Massachusetts, ruled in favor of the Town of Chatham against a citizen group earlier this month over the town's award of a skydiving concession at the Chatham Municipal Airport, the
Cape Cod Times reported. Arguing for summary judgment, the town relied on preemption by FAA regulations in asserting that it had no choice but to award the concession for a lawful activity. The court agreed, according to the newspaper. The trial court arguments were detailed by Tim Wood in a
story for The Cape Cod Chronicle in May. According to Wood's reporting, the citizens argued "that skydiving is not safe and is a nuisance, with multiple flights and
screaming and yelling by tandem jumpers interfering with the 'quiet
enjoyment' of their property. They point to a 2012 crash of a skydiving
plane into Lovers Lake after it ran out of fuel and the severe injuries
suffered by a tandem jumper as evidence of the safety concerns."
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Chatham Municipal Airport on Cape Cod |