Flying Around Sporting Events

This is a good time of the year to remind pilots about the rules for flying over or near sports stadiums and other sporting events. Below is a summary of FDC NOTAM 9/5151, a SPECIAL NOTICE about flying over or around sporting events. The complete NOTAM is located in Part 1, Section 3, “FDC General NOTAMs,” contained in the Notices to Airmen publication at http://www.faa.gov/air_traffic/publications/notices/. Click on the PDF link on that page to go to the current edition of the publication.

Commencing one hour before the scheduled time of the event until one hour after the end of the event, all aircraft and parachute operations are prohibited within a 3 nautical mile radius up to and including 3,000 feet AGL of any stadium having a seating capacity of 30,000 or more people where either a regular or post season Major League Baseball, National Football League, or NCAA division one football game is occurring. This NOTAM also applies to NASCAR Sprint Cup, Indy car, and Champ series races, excluding qualifying and pre-race events.
 
Flights conducted for operational purposes of any event, stadium or venue, and broadcast coverage for the broadcast rights holder are authorized with an approved waiver. The restrictions do not apply to those aircraft authorized by and in contact with ATC for operational or safety of flight purposes, Department of Defense, law enforcement, and air ambulance flight operations.
 
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) classifies the airspace defined in this NOTAM as “National Defense Airspace.” Any person who knowingly or willfully violates the rules concerning operations in this airspace may be subject to certain criminal penalties under 49 USC 46307. Pilots who do not adhere to these procedures may be intercepted, detained, and interviewed by law enforcement and/or security personnel.
 
Information about waiver applications and TSA Security authorizations can be found at http://www.tsa.gov/what_we_do/tsnm/general_aviation/airspace_waivers.shtm (case sensitive -- use lower case only) or by calling TSA at 571-227-2071. Individuals may submit a request for an FAA waiver at https://waiver.c3.faa.gov.

There is an email link on the page at http://www.faa.gov/air_traffic/publications/notices/ you can use if you have any questions.