Tucson Airport Authority v. General Dynamics Corp.

This appeal by General Dynamics from the dismissal, for want of subject matter jurisdiction, of its third-party complaint against the United States, the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of the Ar Force requires us to examine fundamental precepts of federal sovereign immunity.

A complaint filed by the Tucson Airport Authority (“TAA”) sought an order requiring General Dynamics to contribute to the costs of investigation and remediation of groundwater and soü contamination near the Tucson International Airport. In its third-party complaint, General Dynamics sought declaratory and injunctive relief, arguing that the United States is contractually obligated to assume its defense. The district court held that the defendants were immune from suit under the Administrative Procedure Act (“APA”), 5 U.S.C. §§ 702 and 704, and dismissed General Dynamics’s claims. We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291 , and we affirm.

I.

The seeds of this controversy go back to the winding down of defense production efforts in World War II and involve the relationship between General Dynamics’s corporate predecessor in interest, Consolidated Vultee Aircraft, and the federal government. From…