OPERATION NOBLE EAGLE & TFR HISTORY


The term “Temporary Flight Restriction” or TFR didn’t exist until shortly after the 9/11 terrorist attack, when it was coined under Operation Noble Eagle, one of three military operations launched in the wake of 9/11 alongside Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom. Post-9/11, pilots have the additional responsibility prior to flight to determine if there is a TFR along their intended route of flight. The list of TFRs is readily available on websites where pilots commonly check weather reports and file flight plans.


42 May/June 2019


Pilots who neglect to review current TFRs and accidentally stray into the 30-mile- radius TFR no-fly zones without permission could be in for a big shock. The same goes for pilots who appear to be approaching the TFR zones. “Any general aviation (GA) pilot that looks out his window and sees just off his wingtip a Black Hawk, he knows he’s not having a very good day,” Grantham said. “We’ve done over 2,000 of these intercepts post-9/11.”


Grantham related an amusing encounter when he was piloting a Cessna Citation jet intercepting a single-engine Cessna over Washington, D.C. just after 9/11 when the TFRs first went into place. After his copilot’s attempt at radio contact with the Cessna was unsuccessful, Grantham flew up within 20 feet of the smaller Cessna. It took a few minutes before the general aviation pilot finally looked to his left and


saw the Citation. “He nearly jumped out of his seat,” Grantham related. His co-pilot gestured for the GA pilot to follow the Citation, and the GA pilot pointed to himself with a “Who me?” look on his face. “Like, who else do you think we’re looking at?” Grantham remembers thinking while he laughed out loud. “My copilot then pointed at his headset and held up an 18x24-inch sign showing a radio frequency for him to contact us, and he did. We followed him into a local airport and had a talk with him. He was a good guy who made a mistake.”


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