Last weekend, Air Force F-16 fighter jets intercepted civilian aircraft that were violating restricted airspace near President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence.
NORAD confirmed that the incidents happened on Saturday and Sunday. NORAD reported five interceptions between March 1 and March 9, with flares used in two cases to draw pilots’ attention.
Since President Trump’s inauguration, NORAD has investigated more than 20 airspace violations near Mar-a-Lago. Many pilots disregarded FAA-issued NOTAMs.
NORAD Commander Gen. Gregory Guillot emphasized the importance of TFR compliance in ensuring safety and preventing future violations in restricted areas near the president. Guillot continued: “Adherence to TFR procedures is essential to ensure flight safety, national security, and the security of the President.”
Guillot continued: “The procedures are not optional, and the excessive number of recent TFR violations indicates many civil aviators are not reading Notice to Airmen, or NOTAMs, before each flight as required by the FAA, and has resulted in multiple responses by NORAD fighter aircraft to guide offending aircraft out of the TFR.”
Guillot went on: “Should the pilot of an aircraft happen to find itself intercepted by one of the fighters or helicopters, they should immediately come up on frequency 121.5 or 243.0 and turn around to reverse course until receiving additional instructions on one of those frequencies.”
Retired Col. J.F. Joseph described the increase in TFR violations as “unusual,” noting that even student pilots are trained to avoid such airspace and understand the consequences. He clarified: “As of the last week or two, it is become somewhat vogue that these occurrences are happening with this frequency.”
In February 2017, NORAD scrambled F-15 jets at supersonic speeds to intercept an unresponsive plane near Mar-a-Lago, resulting in noise complaints from nearby residents.
