Nelms v. Laird

BUTZNER, Circuit Judge:

To maintain its combat readiness, the United States Air Force regularly trains air crews in supersonic flight. Jim Nick Nelms, who lives in a rural community near Nashville, North Carolina claims military planes on a training mission from Beale Air Force Base in California caused sonic booms that damaged his house so extensively the building is now beyond repair. After unsuccessfully seeking satisfaction from the Air Force, Nelms brought this suit for $16,000 damages. The district court entered summary judgment for the government on the ground that supersonic flight…