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I had completly forgotten about this and should have thought of it after joining the Forum. It is simply a tid bit of unusual information.
I used to fly a Cessna 210 from Manassa, VA to Youngstown, OH during a crazy time when I had two Complimentary medical practices. This was in the late 90s. Flying around the DC area there were only two prohibited area, one near the White House and the second near the Naval Observatory where the VPOTUS lives. I used to take people on a tour circumnavigating the Mall at 1000 feet. On the 4th of July I would circumnavigate Colleg Park Airport and watch the fireworks not only at the Mall but in Baltimore and everywhere else.
After 9-11, everything changed. First the area became an Air Defense Identifcation Zone (ADIZ,) then as it is now, a Special Flright Rules Area (SFRA.) The bottom line is that for all intents and purposes you can only transit certain corridors...forget flying around the Mall or watching Fireworks.
You can lose your pilots license if you fly within its boundaries without clearance. To that end, they installed laser warning lights which are activated and flown only at the intruding aircraft, right at the cockpit. Here is a link to a video of what it looks like from the cockpit as well as FAQ from the FAA. You will have to download the video and Fact Sheet: https://www.faasafety.gov/VisualWarningSystem/VisualWarning.htm
Life is stranger than fiction! :lasergun:
I used to fly a Cessna 210 from Manassa, VA to Youngstown, OH during a crazy time when I had two Complimentary medical practices. This was in the late 90s. Flying around the DC area there were only two prohibited area, one near the White House and the second near the Naval Observatory where the VPOTUS lives. I used to take people on a tour circumnavigating the Mall at 1000 feet. On the 4th of July I would circumnavigate Colleg Park Airport and watch the fireworks not only at the Mall but in Baltimore and everywhere else.
After 9-11, everything changed. First the area became an Air Defense Identifcation Zone (ADIZ,) then as it is now, a Special Flright Rules Area (SFRA.) The bottom line is that for all intents and purposes you can only transit certain corridors...forget flying around the Mall or watching Fireworks.
You can lose your pilots license if you fly within its boundaries without clearance. To that end, they installed laser warning lights which are activated and flown only at the intruding aircraft, right at the cockpit. Here is a link to a video of what it looks like from the cockpit as well as FAQ from the FAA. You will have to download the video and Fact Sheet: https://www.faasafety.gov/VisualWarningSystem/VisualWarning.htm
Life is stranger than fiction! :lasergun: