PIREP: Nantucket during a Presidential TFR

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janders
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PIREP: Nantucket during a Presidential TFR

Post by janders »

I didn't know that President Biden would be visiting KACK while I was there for thanksgiving holidays but he did and so I learned how to follow the instructions in the TFR.

The first step was recognizing there wasn't going to be any VFR sightseeing flights around the island while he was there.

Then you need to read the TFR and it tells you what to do. I initially looked up the text in ForeFlight but there was so much to read and the format wasn't great, so looking up the TFR on https://tfr.faa.gov/ is easier to read for *very* long descriptions.

Here was the relevant part for departing the inner circle if you're just flying on an IFR flight plan.
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There was a phone number to call for making a TSA appointment listed lower in the TFR, so on Monday, the 22nd, I called and made my appointment for departure screening on Sunday the 28th. They ask who you are, where you're going to go, tail number, and how many pax. Once you're done, they give you a confirmation number.

I decided to fuel and get my plane ready before the President arrived so I was minimizing my activities on the ramp. Nantucket is a beautiful place to visit in the fall.
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On the day of departure, there was a no fly window where no one is allowed to fly since POTUS would be in the air. I guessed this would be mid-day so I planned a 9am departure. Show up to the main terminal and get all your bags screened by a special TSA checkpoint around 8am and then a TSA agent will escort you to your aircraft where they also screen your plane. They let you make sure anyone hasn't put anything in there you don't know about and then they take a look.

TSA was very professional and they even let us keep our water bottles and snacks for the flight. After they determined we didn't have anything dangerous, they called and cleared our plane. Once that's done, everything is the same as departing a towered airport on an IFR flight plan.

I think the biggest downside is that since we left through the TSA checkpoint in the main terminal instead of through the FBO, I forgot to pay my bill with the FBO so I had to give them a call the next day.

All in all, I'd recommend a fall flight into the KACK airport even if there is a TFR there. Coming in you will need to land at a screening airport. TSA and everyone at the airport was very easy to work with and the process was very straightforward.
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