(a) Operations that require a medical certificate. Except as provided for in paragraph (b) of this section, no person who holds a medical certificate issued under part 67 of this chapter may act as pilot in command, or in any other capacity as a required pilot flight crewmember, while that person:
(1) Knows or has reason to know of any medical condition that would make the person unable to meet the requirements for the medical certificate necessary for the pilot operation; or
(2) Is taking medication or receiving other treatment for a medical condition that results in the person being unable to meet the requirements for the medical certificate necessary for the pilot operation.
(b) Operations that do not require a medical certificate. For operations provided for in § 61.23(b) of this part, a person shall not act as pilot in command, or in any other capacity as a required pilot flight crewmember, while that person knows or has reason to know of any medical condition that would make the person unable to operate the aircraft in a safe manner.
(c) Operations requiring a medical certificate or a U.S. driver's license. For operations provided for in § 61.23(c), a person must meet the provisions of—
(1) Paragraph (a) of this section if that person holds a medical certificate issued under part 67 of this chapter and does not hold a U.S. driver's license.
(2) Paragraph (b) of this section if that person holds a U.S. driver's license.
[Docket 25910, 62 FR 16298, Apr. 4, 1997, as amended by Amdt. 61-110, 69 FR 44866, July 27, 2004; Amdt. 61-124, 74 FR 42550, Aug. 21, 2009]
Notes of Decisions
Cited in
12
cases (
8 in the last 5 years), 1978–2026 · leading case:
Ranger Ins. Co. v. Bowie, 574 S.W.2d 540 (Tex. 1978).
Ranger Ins. Co. v. Bowie, 574 S.W.2d 540 (Tex. 1978).
“…a known medical deficiency, that would make him unable to meet the requirements for his current medical certificate.” 14 C.F.R. 61.53.”
Thomas Anderson v. UAL, 140 F.4th 385 (7th Cir. 2025).
· cites it 2× “Plaintiffs’ proposed amended complaint alleges that United retaliated against pilots who refused the COVID-19 vaccine and appears to suggest that any pilot who received a COVID-19 vaccine would be participating in an illegal act un- der 14 C.F.R. § 61.53 . That regulatory…”
Richard W. Heller v. United States, 803 F.2d 1558 (11th Cir. 1987).
“4 Pursuant to 14 C.F.R. § 61.53 (1986), Heller had Dr. Teng notify the AME of his condition, and on February 8, Dr.”
Michael Solondz v. FAA, 141 F.4th 268 (D.C. Cir. 2025).
“See 14 C.F.R. § 61.53 (a) (prohibiting airmen from flying if they know they have a medical condition that would make them “unable to meet the requirements for the medical certificate necessary for the pilot operation”).”
McCauley v. Raytheon Travel Air Co., 152 F. Supp. 2d 1267 (D. Kan. 2001).
“” 14 C.F.R. § 61.53 . The Kansas legislature has defined by statute several protected activities, related to reporting certain types of abuses, and Kansas courts have recognized that filing a workers’ compensation claim and reporting a serious infraction of rules, regulations or…”
Nw. Airlines, Inc. v. Fed. Aviation Admin., 795 F.2d 195 (D.C. Cir. 1986).
“11 (a)(2) (1985) (prohibiting acting as a crew member while under the influence of alcohol); and 14 C.F.R. § 61.53 (1985) (prohibiting acting as a crew member while suffering from a known medical deficiency).”
Anderson v. United Airlines, Inc. (N.D. Ill. 2024).
· cites it 3× “In its previous order, the Court explained that the plaintiffs premised their claims on United's alleged violation of 14 C.F.R. § 61.53 , which prohibits a pilot who holds a medical certificate from operating an airplane during a medical deficiency, but did not explain how "the…”
Anderson v. United Airlines, Inc. (N.D. Ill. 2023).
· cites it 2× “Anderson alleges that United's vaccine mandate violated 14 C.F.R. § 61.53 , which prohibits a pilot who holds a medical certificate from operating an airplane during a medical deficiency.”
Thomas Anderson v. UAL (7th Cir. 2025).
· cites it 2× “Plaintiffs’ proposed amended complaint alleges that United retaliated against pilots who refused the COVID-19 vaccine and appears to suggest that any pilot who received a COVID-19 vaccine would be participating in an illegal act un- der 14 C.F.R. § 61.53 . That regulatory…”
Saliba v. Allied Pilots Ass'n (D. Ariz. 2023).
“20 14 C.F.R. § 61.53 . Nothing in this section even arguably gives Saliba the unilateral 21 authority to decide whether to comply with a mask mandate policy, especially when that 22 policy did not require him to wear a mask while actually piloting the airplane from the 23 flight…”
Jadair Int'l Inc v. Am. Nat'l Prop. & Cas. Co. (E.D. Wis. 2022).
“The letter further notified Schmutzler that he is “advised that it is unlawful under 14 C.F.R. § 61.53 , for [him] to exercise airman privileges unless [he] hold[s] an appropriate medical certificate.”
Ryan Paul v. FAA (D.C. Cir. 2026).
“But Amerijet’s test-refusal determination, by automatically prohibiting Paul from performing the safety-sensitive duties his medical certificate authorizes him to perform until he obtains a new certificate, see 14 C.F.R. §§ 61.53 (a)(1), 120.113(d)(4), arguably did “amend[],…”
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the
Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and
treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.