‘Darrin’s Law’ Aims To Limit Tribe's Ability To Confiscate Airplanes | Aviation International News

Regulations and Government

‘Darrin’s Law’ Aims To Limit Tribal Airplane Taking

Emergency landing raised issue of Red Lake Nation's claims over reservation airspace

By Matt Thurber • Editor-in-Chief

December 29, 2025

After Darrin Smedsmo experienced a total engine failure in his 1946 Stinson 108 while flying over the Red Lake Nation reservation in Minnesota on October 15, the tribe confiscated the airplane. The tribe claims that Smedsmo wasn’t allowed to fly over the reservation, based on a 1978 tribal resolution claiming that no aircraft are allowed to fly over tribal land below 20,000 feet (above ground or sea level was not specified).

While he is waiting to see if the tribe will return his airplane, Smedsmo has launched a non-profit organization to fund a lawsuit against the chairman of the Red Lake Nation to clarify and set a precedent acknowledging that the federal government has jurisdiction over all U.S. airspace. “Not only do we want to set legal precedent,” he told AIN, “but my lawyer also wants to approach this legislatively, with ‘Darrin’s law,’ stating that if we have an emergency landing in a reservation, we get to keep our airplane.”

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