49 U.S.C. § 46502 — Aircraft piracy

(a) In Special Aircraft Jurisdiction. (1)(A) "Aircraft piracy" means seizing or taking control of an aircraft within the special aircraft jurisdiction of the United States, using force, violence, threat of force or violence, or any form of intimidation, with wrongful intent. (B) An attempted hijacking still counts as being within that jurisdiction even if the aircraft wasn't in flight at the time, as long as it would have been within that jurisdiction had the hijacking succeeded. (2) A person who commits, attempts, or conspires to commit aircraft piracy (A) must be imprisoned for at least 20 years; or (B) if their act causes someone else's death, must be put to death or imprisoned for life — regardless of the usual limits in section 3559(b) of title 18.

(b) Outside Special Aircraft Jurisdiction. (1) A person who commits, or conspires to commit, an offense under the Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Seizure of Aircraft, on an aircraft in flight outside U.S. special aircraft jurisdiction, (A) must be imprisoned for at least 20 years; or (B) if their act causes someone else's death, must be put to death or imprisoned for life — regardless of the usual limits in section 3559(b) of title 18. (2) There is jurisdiction over that offense if (A) a U.S. national was aboard the aircraft; (B) the offender is a U.S. national; or (C) the offender is later found in the United States. (3) "National of the United States" has the meaning given in section 101(a)(22) of the Immigration and Nationality Act. This section does not further define the term.