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English: 77th Congress, 1st session } HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES { Report No. 1403 MRS. EDDIE A. SCHNEIDER

November 7, 1941 to the Committee of the Whole House and ordered to be printed. Mr. Keogh, from the Committee on Claims, submitted the following

REPORT [To accompany H. R. 5290]

The Committee on Claims, to whom was referred the bill (H. R. 5290) for the relief of Mrs. Eddie A. Schneider, having considered the same, report favorably thereon without amendment and recommend that the bill do pass.
The purpose of the proposed legislation is to pay the sum of $10,000 to Mrs. Eddie A. Schneider, of 3250 Ninety-third Street, Jackson Heights, Long Island, N. Y. , in full settlement of all claims against the United States for the death of her husband, Eddie A. Schneider, who was killed by the collision of the United States Navy plane with a private plane piloted by him, near Floyd Bennett Field, N. Y. , on December 23, 1940.

Statement of Facts

It appears that on December 23, 1940, a private plane piloted by Eddie Schneider was struck by a Navy plane, piloted by Ensign Kenneth A. Kuehner, United States Naval Reserve, in the vicinity of Floyd Bennett Field, Brooklyn, N. Y., causing the death of Eddie Schneider and completely demolishing his plane.
The evidence indicates that the first contact of the Navy plane with the private plane was when its propeller cut through the tail of the private plane and out the tail completely off. This was confirmed by the fact that the tail surfaces of the private plane were found later to have been completely severed and by markings found on the propeller of the Navy plane.

After the propeller of the Navy plane severed the tail surfaces, the private plane pulled ahead for an instant. The Navy plane swung slightly then overtook the private plane, again cutting one of its wings causing it to immediately spin to the waters below. An inspection of the Navy plane revealed that the leading edges of both blades of the propeller had been gouged and nicked, apparently at the time the ...