JD Vance’s Vice Presidential campaign has been one for the history books for all the wrong reasons, and we can now add “entering restricted airspace” to his list of accomplishments. You see, the Ohio Senator and Republican VP hopeful’s Boeing 737-800 accidentally violated the Prohibited Airspace 56 over Washington, D.C. a few days ago as it was leaving Washington Reagan National Airport for Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport in Arizona. Woof.
The pilot was notified of the airspace violation by air traffic control and was given a phone number to contact for possible pilot deviation once they landed, according to Simply Flying. The prohibited airspace – referred to as P-56 – encompasses important areas of Washington, D.C., including the U.S. National Mall, the White House and the Naval Observatory. It’s completely prohibited for commercial and private planes.
Because of how secure this airspace is, the Federal Aviation Administration is not the only organization getting involved with this investigation. The pilot, Eastern Air Express (the company that owns the plane) and Vance’s campaign campaign will have to answer to the U.S. Secret Service because of this. It is pretty much the most restricted airspace on the planet.
Here’s a little more from The War Zone on just how heavily fortified the airspace in and around Washington, D.C. is and how pilots are meant to navigate it:
The airspace over Washington, D.C. is heavily guarded by an array of U.S. military assets, including U.S. Air Force F-16 fighters sitting on alert and National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System (NASAMS) and Avenger air defense systems deployed on the ground. Less-than-lethal capabilities are also in place, including ground-based laser systems.
[…]
Flying in and out of Reagan National Airport has always presented certain challenges given its location on the bank of the Potomac River to the south of D.C. proper and outside Arlington, Virginia. Today, aircraft departing from the airport’s Runway 01, as M917XA did earlier this week, typically bank left to follow the river to the north, though they also sometimes take hard right turns to exit the area. Regardless, there is always an eye toward avoiding the National Mall.
An official FAA notice also advises that “especially with a west wind” pilots need to execute “a left turn as soon as practicable … to maintain a ground track over the Potomac River” when departing Reagan National Airport to the northwest.
Listen, I don’t know what the hell is going on with “Trump Force Two” but this is just the latest in a string of bizarre incidents involving the plane. A few weeks ago – on a flight from Milwaukee to Cincinnati – a door-seal malfunctioned and it had to make an emergency landing back in Milwaukee, according to Simply Flying. TWZ also reports that back in July the plane had to circle outside Milwaukee because it didn’t have the proper clearance to enter the airspace over the city. Bizarre shit, man, but I wouldn’t expect anything less from JD.