Fire Falls from Skies Over Mar-a-Lago as F-16s Deal with Aircraft Getting Way Too Close to Trump Estate

F-16 fighters went aloft twice over the weekend to chase away aircraft that entered restricted airspace over President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence.

“Twice in the past 48 hours, F-16 fighter jets from the Continental U.S. NORAD region responded to a general aviation aircraft over Palm Beach, FL, violating the Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR). Pilots, please check NOTAMs!” the North American Air Defense Command posted on X.

A NORAD release said that the first incident took place at about 8:50 a.m. on Saturday. Airspace above Mar-a-Lago is restricted when Trump is staying there.

The second aircraft to violate the restricted zone flew into it at 1:15 p.m. Sunday.

Twice in the past 48 hours, F-16 fighter jets from the Continental U.S. NORAD region responded to a general aviation aircraft over Palm Beach, FL, violating the Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR). 🚨Pilots, please check NOTAMs! #WeHaveTheWatch https://t.co/kwx4MvT7x6

— North American Aerospace Defense Command (@NORADCommand) March 9, 2025

The release said that in responding the planes, the F-16s “dispensed flares” that might have been seen from the ground.

“The flares were used to draw attention from or communicate with the pilot,” the statement noted.

“Flares are employed with the highest regard for safety, burn out quickly and completely, and pose no danger to people on the ground,” the release explained.

NORAD has responded to more than 20 restricted airspace incursions near Mar-A-Lago since Trump took office on Jan. 20, the release said.

NORAD Commander Gen. Gregory Guillot said, it “works closely” with the FAA to “keep the skies over America safe, with close attention paid to areas with Temporary Flight Restrictions (TFR).”

“Adherence to TFR procedures is essential to ensure flight safety, national security, and the security of the president,” Guillot said.

“The procedures are not optional, and the excessive number of recent TFR violations indicates many civil aviators are not reading Notice to Airmen, or NOTAMs, before each flight as required by the FAA, and has resulted in multiple responses by NORAD fighter aircraft to guide offending aircraft out of the TFR,” he said.

“Should the pilot of an aircraft happen to find itself intercepted by one of fighters or helicopters, they should immediately come up on frequency 121.5 or 243.0 and turn around to reverse course until receiving additional instructions on one of those frequencies.”

Last week, F-16 fighters chased away three planes in the area, according to CBS.

Trump was never considered in danger, the report said.

The most recent Florida incidents took place on the same weekend that, in Washington D.C., Secret Service agents shot an armed man near the White House, according to NBC.

Andrew Dawson, 27, of Indiana was wounded. NBC reported that agents had been warned a suicidal person was coming to Washington from Indiana.

Trump was not at the White House at the time of the incident.

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