Memorandum for the Secretary of Transportation

[USAFlags]

By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and laws of the United States including 49 U.S.C. 44302, et seq., I hereby: 1. Determine that continuation of U.S.-flag commercial air service is necessary in the interest of air commerce, national security, and the foreign policy of the United States.

Memorandum for the Secretary of Transportation

[Peter Ansoff]

This memorandum actually deals with the authority of the Secretary of Transportation to provide insurance to US airlines. While it doesn't have much to do with flags per se, it does illustrate an important point about the history of the US flag and other national flags.

The original purpose of a national flag was to identify a ship at sea as being under the protection and jurisdiction of the nation from which it came, even though it might be thousands of miles away from home. There is a large, long-standing body of international law and custom governing the use of national flags. While airplanes do not often physically fly flags, the notion of a "flag carrier" is still there, a historical reminder of why flags were invented in the first place.


Peter Ansoff