Pilots adapting to airspace restriction during Trump’s Mar-a-Lago getaways

Some pilots just aren’t getting the message: They can’t come and go as they please across South Florida’s skies this weekend or any other time the president is in town.

Since last month, at least 27 aircraft have violated a temporary restriction on the airspace near Donald Trump’s estate in Palm Beach, federal officials say. And it’s going to take some time and heartache for South Florida’s aviation community to get used to it, aviation experts say.

When President George W. Bush visited his ranch near Dallas at the beginning of his presidency in 2001, there was a learning curve for pilots who “went out flying on a Saturday and didn’t check,” recalls aviation attorney and former U.S. Air Force officer David Norton, of Dallas.

If aviators don’t comply, they’ll be stunned to see a fighter pilot hanging off their wing, he said.

“The flying community will get used to it and they need to be careful: It can really catch you off-guard,” he said.

With Mar-a-Lago serving as Trump’s Winter White House, South Florida faces becoming “real quiet” on weekends for flights, said Janet Marnane, a former Navy flight officer during the Cold War.

“These pilots are not used to having so many [restrictions] in this area, but they are going to get used to it real fast,” said Marnane, an assistant professor at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach. “It is going to be the new normal, but only on the weekends.”

To heighten awareness of the restrictions, the Federal Aviation Administration says it plans to do more outreach.

The FAA will keep reaching out “to educate local pilots,” sending out socialmedia announcements and meeting with pilots at South Florida airports, the agency said. It recently held a briefing at Boca Raton Airport, and at a Jan. 26 forum at Palm Beach International Airport, it briefed more than 100 pilots. It also has presented a webinar.

The president’s schedule this weekend included a tour of an Orlando Catholic school for a meet-andgreet Friday, before he traveled to Palm Beach, where he attended the Republican National Committee spring retreat at the Four Seasons Resort.

Trump’s return to Palm Beach County marks his fourth weekend in South Florida since becoming president; the three prior weekend visits came backto-back in February.

Each time he visits, pilots within a 30-mile ring of his mansion must abide by the rules — or risk having Air Force fighter jets on their tail.

The president’s visits to Mar-a-Lago in February led to dozens of aviators violating the airspace restrictions.

From Feb. 3 to Feb. 5, there were 10 violations. The FAA reported three violations from Feb. 10 to Feb. 12. And another 14 pilots found themselves in violation between Feb. 17 and Feb. 20.

The FAA hasn’t released the names of the people who violated airspace restrictions. It also has declined to elaborate about each case, saying it is investigating.

Pilots violating a restricted space might get off with a warning, but presidential-related restrictions likely will lead to a license suspension, Norton said.

Violators, after being forced to land, will “be met by Secret Service and you are going to spend many hours explaining why you were there,” Norton said.

Michael Kucharek, a spokesman for North American Aerospace Defense Command, based at Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado Springs, said pilots doing an interception often try to get a pilot’s attention with visual hand signals.

If that fails, they’ll “rock the wings,” which means the military jet will fly in front for attention and sway to each side signaling for the pilot to follow.

Another attention-grabbing method: The release of flares that are “essentially dropped in front of the pilot if all these other things don’t work,” he said.

Shooting down a plane “remains an option” although “that would be a very bad day,” he said.

Perhaps the most notable airspace violation last month was when two Air Force F-15s hit supersonic speeds to intercept an aircraft, causing a sonic boom that residents heard from Broward to Palm Beach counties.

“I thought it was an actual bomb,” said Coral Springs Mayor Skip Campbell. “The house shook; you felt it vibrate.”

Fighter jets have to go about 750 mph to make a sonic boom, which is “atypical” and “situationally dependent,” Kucharek said. “We prefer not to go sonic over populated areas. It’s done with the utmost caution so as not to alarm folks on the ground.”

Despite the FAA’s outreach efforts, officials say it’s up to pilots to safely conduct their flights. They’re responsible for checking notices as part of their flight preparations so they’re aware of any presidential-airspace issues that could affect them.

Clara Bennett, executive director for the Boca Raton Airport Authority, said the airport is doing its part, too.

Each time there is a flight restriction announced, the airport tries to make sure everyone knows by email, and website and Facebook alerts.

“We want to make sure our base pilots are aware of it and so they don’t get into any kind of issue,” she said. “It’s just part of good communication, particularly at the beginning.”

Pilots who hop on their aircraft for no other reason than to “buy a gallon of milk” will need to start checking in to learn of restrictions, said Michael Anthony Punziano, the owner of ATA Flight School in Pembroke Pines and a retired Air Force pilot.

“I wish he [Trump] was golfing at Camp David like Obama used to do,” he said.