Red Lake Nation seized Roseau man's plane after emergency landing
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A Roseau pilot hopes to get his plane back from a tribal nation after he made an emergency landing on tribal land.
Pilot Darrin Smedsmo's plane was seized by Red Lake Nation after he landed the aircraft on the reservation on Oct. 15.
Smedsmo said he was flying over Lower Red Lake when the propeller on his single-engine plane failed and forced him to make an emergency landing on the western part of the reservation.
In an interview with MPR News, Smedsmo said he was flying to Bemidji for training when he heard a noise he described as his "engine laboring."
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"I was over the lake by maybe half a mile, and when I looked up, my prop was stopped in front of me, and that told me one thing, catastrophic engine failure," Smedsmo said.
Smedsmo said he exercised what he believed was the only safe option for landing.
"Underneath me was a lake. Between the swamp and the lake was the road, and then the other side of the swamp was the water," said Smedsmo. "I was familiar with that area, driven through it many times, flown over it quite a few times, and so I realized within seconds, I was going to make land."
Smedsmo said it took him only a few minutes to land the aircraft safely on Minnesota Highway 1, twenty miles west of the town of Red Lake on the reservation. He was uninjured during the incident, and the plane was unharmed.
Smedsmo said a friend who happened to be in the area saw the landing and stopped to help him tow the plane safely off the highway. His friend then called tribal police to report the landing, according to Smedsmo.
A statement posted to the Red Lake Tribal Council account on social media Monday confirmed the tribe seized and impounded Smedsmo's aircraft shortly after the plane made an emergency landing on the reservation.
The tribe stated that it wanted to "clarify the rationale" for seizing the plane. According to the statement, the plane had not been authorized to land on the reservation, and that "the landing created immediate safety, liability, and resource-protection concerns for the Tribe."
Smedsmo said he signed a citation that stated he was in violation of a tribal resolution that prohibits aircraft from flying under 20,000 feet over Red Lake Nation lands.
A copy of the resolution posted to Red Lake Nation's social media account indicates the tribe passed a resolution almost five decades ago "prohibiting the flying of any airplanes over lands of the Red Lake Band of Chippewa Indians at an altitude of less than 20,000 feet."
Smedsmo said the citation set a hearing in Red Lake Nation tribal court for Nov. 3. That hearing was canceled by Red Lake Nation last Friday, according to Smedsmo.
Smedsmo said he was prepared to argue whether pilots are allowed to fly over the reservation. Smedsmo, who says he has flown for many years, said he does not believe the tribe has the authority to regulate airspace over the reservation.
"My fight is for my plane, but it's going to be the Federal Aviation Administration's fight to deal with the airspace claim," Smedsmo said.
In a statement on Monday, Red Lake Nation said it welcomes "engagement with the FAA and governmental peers to clarify Tribal protocols for emergency landings and Tribal laws and resolutions governing overflight, so that future incidents may be handled with greater transparency, cooperation, and mutual respect."
Smedsmo said that if he does not receive a favorable outcome in tribal court, he will petition U.S. federal court in the hopes of getting his plane back. His plane is a single-engine 1946 Stinson 108-1, a vintage aircraft.
"It is my baby and my dream plane. It's an oldie but a goodie," Smedsmo said.
The plane has remained impounded on the reservation since the incident in mid-October.
In preparation for the canceled hearing, Smedsmo said he has consulted with an attorney licensed to practice in Red Lake Nation Tribal Court.
Red Lake Nation is the only "closed reservation" in the state, a status derived from treaties the tribe signed with the U.S. government. The tribe is the only reservation in the state that holds all of its lands in common. The tribe limits who can visit or live on the reservation, and its members are not subject to state criminal and civil jurisdiction on its lands. The tribe maintains its own justice system, including its own police force.
Correction (Nov. 5, 2025): An earlier version of this story had an incorrect spelling of Darrin Smedsmo's name.
