Marilyn Maynard v. United States

Marilyn Maynard sustained severe personal injuries when a horse she was riding became frightened by the sonic boom created by a U. S. Air Force SR-71 aircraft and threw her to the ground. Invoking the Federal Tort Claims Act ( 28 U.S.C. §§ 2671-80 ), she commenced this suit against the United States to recover damages. The gravamen of her complaint was that the aircraft’s route was negligently selected. The United States moved for summary judgment on the grounds that the negligent act was one within the discretionary function exception to the Tort Claims Act ( 28 U.S.C. § 2680 (a)). The district court granted the motion and dismissed the action. Plaintiff has appealed. We affirm.

The government’s uncontroverted affidavits showed that the decision to conduct operational training flights in the supersonic SR-71 and the order directing such flights was made by General Naz-zaro, Commander of the Strategic Air Command; that the SR-71 aircraft was flying such a mission at the time of the accident; that the actual selection of this particular flight route was made by Lt. Col. Caselton, Chief of the Navigation Section of the 9th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing at Beale Air Force Base, to…