Tue, May 26, 2009
When The President Is In Residence, Stay Farther Away
What you don't know may hurt you -- or, at least, scare the
(deleted ) out of you.
The pilots of three aircraft flew into the temporarily-expanded
Prohibited airspace over Camp David this weekend, and each was
greeted by an F-15 fighter jet for their mistake.
FAA Spokeswoman Laura Brown said the incursions happened at
about 0930, then 1300 and 1500. Pilots who stray into such
prohibited airspace are interviewed by federal officials to
determine if further action is necessary, and the FAA may file a
violation against the Airman's certificate if they deem
necessary... and they often do.
Normally, the Prohibited airspace is a static issue around Camp
David, but the amount of Prohibited airspace expands when the
President is in residence. The pilots may have been unaware of the
temporary expansion of the "P-40" restricted area as warning of
such is often done on short notice. President Obama and his family
spent much of the Memorial Day Weekend in the Maryland
mountains.
Multiple news sources indicated each pilot only "nicked" the
edge of the restricted airspace. Only one of the airplanes was
publicly identified... an unfortunate Beechcraft Bonanza. An
official said the violations may have been due to an increase in
air traffic this time of the year (though better notification of
such critical airspace changes is long overdue -- Ed.).
The Temporary Flight Restrictions, or TFR's have been used by
the FAA for years to restrict overflights of certain airspace for
reasons of national security. Their use has been expanded
dramatically since the events of September 11th, 2001.
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