Convoluted And Confusing TFR Procedures Bag Errant Pilot And Another Black Eye For GA

News/Analysis By Jim Campbell, ANN Editor-In-Chief

It's a story that we've told before and will, we regret, be telling again at some point in the future. The archaic US Airspace system and the FAA's poorly thought-out TFR program have bagged another pilot... who, regrettably, should have known better.

According to the friendly, gun-toting, folks at NORAD, fighters intercepted a Beechcraft Bonanza 11 miles from Camp David Saturday at 1525 EDT. The aircraft was not in radio contact, but two F-15s out of Jacksonville IAP, FL, escorted the plane out of the area -- whereupon it landed at Hagerstown, MD, without incident. The Feds, of course, are investigating.

NORAD, of course is the United States and Canada bi-national organization charged with the missions of aerospace warning and aerospace control for North America. Aerospace warning includes the monitoring of man-made objects in space, and the detection, validation, and warning of attack against North America whether by aircraft, missiles, or space vehicles, through mutual support arrangements with other commands.

The GA community has been inundated with ever more numerous and complex TFRs over the course of the last few years, escalating sharply in the wake of 9/11. More and more reasons have been used to eliminate access to larger and larger areas of airspace, even to the point where commercial operators (like Disney) and others have been able to get the government to issue highly restrictive TFRs despite the protests of the aviation community, for questionable reasons.

Over the course of this single weekend (and by no means is this a complete list as the FAA site is notorious for errors and downtime), there were still 3 TFRs posted for Sunday, 28 TFRs for Saturday (not including those that have since been canceled and are no longer posted), and 9 for Friday. It might have been easier to issue one 'non' TFR, to tell us where we COULD fly...

Welcome to the land of the free... which obviously does not extend to the nation's airspace.

ANN E-I-C Note:  Someone PLEASE tell USA Today that when they select photos to go along with their stories, that using an F-18 instead of an F-15... two very recognizable airframes and planforms, makes them look foolish and ignorant... just like they do when they try to report on Oshkosh each year... sigh.

FMI: www.norad.mil