Which state jurisdictions apply on board a US aircraft in flight?
<p>If an aircraft is in flight in the airspace above a US state, say Texas, does Texas state law, or potentially the laws of any other US states, apply to the passengers on board during that time, or is it solely US federal law that applies?</p>
<p>Does the answer depend on whether the flight originated in Texas, landed in Texas, or on which other states' (if any) airspace the flight transitioned through while en route?</p>
<p>Does the answer depend on the flight's duration, maximal altitude, or current altitude at the time the behavior in question was engaged in by a passenger?</p>
<p>Does the answer depend on the type of aircraft (e.g., plane, helicopter, hot air balloon etc)?</p>
<p>As a motivating example, consider a US state that bans medication abortion. If a pregnant woman in that state who seeks such an abortion boards an aircraft and the aircraft then takes off, the woman ingests the prohibited abortion medication, and the flight then lands a few minutes later, can the woman be prosecuted under the laws of the state?</p>
<p><strong>Edit:</strong> a comment suggested a similarity between my question and <a href="https://law.stackexchange.com/questions/77771/who-has-jurisdiction-on-an-international-flight-in-international-airspace-in-a-s">another question</a> involving international flights and which countries' jurisdictions apply to them. My question is about <em>domestic</em> US flights, in which case it seems reasonable to assume that only US law governs. The question is about <em>which</em> US law, that is, which of the different US jurisdictional layers (federal and state primarily) will apply in a given situation involving a US aircraft in flight. So, I don't think this question is a duplicate or answered by the other question. (I also tried to research the issue with google prior to asking the question, and found similar questions discussing the country level, but nothing that discusses different states within the US.)</p>

<h2>None</h2>
<p>From the moment an aircraft’s doors are closed for departure until the moment they are opened an aircraft is “in flight” and are covered by the special aviation jurisdiction of the United States and out of the jurisdiction of any particular state.</p>

united-states abortion interstate-travel choice-of-law