Two Air Force 5-16 jets were scrambled to intercept a civilian plane that flew over Mar-a-Lago on Sunday, North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) confirmed.
The civilian plane was observed flying within a zone under a temporary flight restriction at around 1.15pm on 9 March. The F-16s fired flares to get the pilot’s attention.
At the time of the incursion, President Trump was finishing a round of gold at his West Palm Beach golf course, which was the scene of the second assassination attempt during the election.
The incident was the second time in 48 hours F-16s were sent to respond to aviation violations over Palm Beach.
Since Trump’s inauguration, NORAD claims to have responded to “over 20 tracks of interest” entering the restricted flight zone over Palm Beach.
On 1 March F-16s intercepted three civilian aircraft that violated the restricted area on three separate occasions. Another violation was reported on 18 February.
“Adherence to TFR procedures is essential to ensure flight safety, national security, and the security of the President,” said Commander of NORAD and US Northern Command Gen. Gregory Guillot.
“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.”
