Paul E. Rawlins v. National Transportation Safety Board and T. Allan McArtor Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration

EDITH H. JONES, Circuit Judge:

Responding to petitioner’s appeal from an order of the National Transportation Safety Board revoking his commercial pilot’s license, we affirm that § 609(c) of the Federal Aviation Act, 49 U.S.C. § 1429(c), mandates this severe penalty for pilots who have knowingly trafficked in drugs.

In December 1985, Paul Rawlins piloted a Cessna 210 from Belize, Central America to Houston, Texas. The flight ended in a crash near Houston Hobby Airport. It is undisputed that petitioner knowingly carried a cargo of approximately 750 pounds of marijuana. Rawlins was subsequently…