NBC News reported this morning that two NORAD F-16s intercepted two private planes flying in the restricted airspace where President Obama was vacationing this weekend near Port St. Lucie, Fla.
The planes were intercepted in totally separate incidents, one occurring at 9:30 a.m. on Saturday and the other at 5:10 p.m. on Sunday. One aircraft was identified as a Lancair 320 and the other as a Cessna.
While neither plane was said to pose a threat, it was obvious that the pilots were either not apprised of the no-fly zone or chose to ignore it; for that, both of the small aircraft were treated to an F-16 escort out of the zone.
President Obama has been golfing with Tiger Woods over the long holiday while his family enjoyed a ski trip to Colorado.
In addition to Santa tracking in the month of December, NORAD's main purpose, as a joint organization with the U.S. and Canada, is to provide defense and aerospace warning for both countries. This weekend’s incidents proved they are very effectively “on the job.”
While most of NORAD’s intercepts fly largely under the radar, they also provided escort for an errant Cessna over the skies of Charleston, S.C., in late November.
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