The Not So Friendly Skies: Court Upholds Conviction for Flying Without a License

Delbert Stewart flew legally with a properly issued private airman's certificate for almost 40 years. In 2014, however, the Federal Aviation Administration suspended his certificate when he failed to respond to the FAA's claim that he flew at altitudes and in weather conditions for which he was not authorized. Claiming the FAA had no jurisdiction over private pilots, Stewart never responded to allegations, and he never surrendered his certificate, as required by the FAA. In fact, he continued flying, despite the issuance of numerous fines against him by the FAA and even after suspending the airworthiness certificate for his plane. 

By 2019, the FAA had finally had enough. After Stewart landed his plane without landing gear, it revoked his airman's certificate and ordered its surrender. Stewart again refused to surrender his certificate, prompting the FAA to issue yet another $5,000 fine. This did not stop Stewart from flying, however. 

In May 2021, a federal grand jury returned an indictment charging Stewart with three counts of knowingly and willfully flying "without an airman's certificate...." 49 U.S.C. § 46306(b)(7). Stewart subsequently moved to dismiss the indictment, arguing he was never "without" his airman's certificate because he never surrendered it to the FAA and thus had it in his possession each time he flew. Moreover, he argued that the 49 U.S.C. § 46306(b)(7) did not require that he possess a "valid" certificate. The district court denied Stewart's motion, holding that the statute required airmen to have certificates authorizing them to fly, and that his suspended, and subsequently revoked, license did not authorize him to do so. Stewart subsequently entered a conditional guilty plea, and the district court sentenced him to two years of probation.

In a published opinion, the Court affirmed the district court's order. After reviewing the statutory text, the Court concluded that 49 U.S.C. § 46306(b)(7) required more than a mere certificate: it required the pilot to have actual authorization from the FAA to fly. Since Stewart repeatedly flew without such authorization, the Court concluded the statute applied.