Every September, as world dignitaries come to New York to attend the United Nations General Assembly, the airspace above the city becomes busy as well. Regulations are increased and security is tightened. This year, things are going to be more restricted and for a longer period because of the back-to-back visits by Pope Francis, President Obama, and more than 100 heads of state for the 70th session of the UNGA.
Every time a special event, such as the UNGA, or a VIP movement, such as the President and the Pope’s visits, takes place, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announces a Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR). On a map, a TFR usually takes the form of rings of various sizes around arrival and departure points as well as areas where the VIP will be during the time in between. To enter in and out of these rings, an aircraft must be operating under TSA-approved security procedures, its flight plans must be filed beforehand with the FAA and it must follow predetermined routes.
The Pope’s arrival and departure in New York will cause a TFR of an 8-nautical-mile (about 9 miles) radius around John F. Kennedy Airport between 4:30 and 5:45 PM on Thursday, September 24, and between 8 and 9:15 AM on Saturday, September 26. For the duration of his visit, a 7 NM inner ring covers all three heliports and one seaplane base in Manhattan and a 20 NM outer ring covers the general metropolitan area.
From John F. Kennedy Airport, the Pope will take a helicopter to the Downtown Manhattan Heliport, where sightseeing tours are handled. If you want to observe the chaos from above, the heliport will still be open for air tours – just avoid the hours when the Pope is flying in and out of the city. This means tours will be cut short on Thursday, September 24 at 2:30 PM and will start an hour late on Saturday, September 26 at 10 AM. Brian Tolbert, manager of the Downtown Manhattan Heliport, says Secret Service will take over the heliport two hours and before and after the Pope’s appearance. Tolbert says these kinds of events hurt his business, “We don’t get any compensation from the government.” According to Tolbert, there are usually about 12 sightseeing helicopters at the Downtown Manhattan Heliport and each helicopter makes about 10 to 12 flights a day.
While the Pope is in town, the tour paths are also restricted: all tours must be conducted at or below 900 feet, at a maximum of 80 knots (about 90 miles per hour), and they cannot go North of the West 30th Street heliport or the East 34th Street heliport.
Patricia Wagner, general manager of the East 34th Street heliport, says her heliport will be open for business. However, all heliports will have strict TSA scanning from the 25th to 30th 7 AM to 7 PM, so make sure to bring a photo ID, says Wagner.
Wagner expects her business to be affected by the Papal visit, especially on a Thursday and Friday with great flying weather forecasted. Wagner says the various events are “pressuring everybody to think twice about making a plan to make a business meeting. They are thinking, ‘Can we push it to next week when it’s not so busy?’”