Flying a Drone Within 30 Miles of the Super Bowl Will Carry Severe Penalties

Super Bowl LVI is just a couple days away, and as is the case with most major sporting events and large-scale gatherings, the FAA is implementing restrictions on drone flight near the game. However, the restrictions are particularly severe this time. 

It is standard operating procedure for a TFR (temporary flight restriction) to be issued before sporting events, though the TFRs related to SoFi Stadium, the Super Bowl venue, are especially restrictive. Starting the day before, on February 12 at 10:00 AM local time, pilots will be forbidden from flying a drone within a mile of the stadium, with the TFR extended to the beginning of Class A airspace at 18,000 feet.

This initial TFR will remain in effect until the day of the Super Bowl, February 13, at 2:30 pm, when a 30-mile radius TFR will take effect (also up to 18,000 feet), which covers much of the greater Los Angeles area, including Anaheim, Pasadena, Burbank, Long Beach, and Torrance and carries penalties including a minimum $30,000 fine and a possible prison sentence. Some have criticized this TFR as too restrictive, noting that someone could reasonably be 25 miles away in the Angeles National Forest, for example, and still be in violation of it. Normally, sports events have 5-mile TFRs, but with the increased security and other aspects of the Super Bowl, such as military flyovers, it appears the FAA is taking no chances. If you are in the Los Angeles area, be sure you take note this weekend. 

Alex Cooke's picture

Alex Cooke is a Cleveland-based portrait, events, and landscape photographer. He holds an M.S. in Applied Mathematics and a doctorate in Music Composition. He is also an avid equestrian.

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7 Comments

Oh I'm sure some idiot/"influencer" will do it anyway.

Seriously, 30 miles?

NFL got to protect its monopoly. On the other side, can prohibit drones with bombs

On a more serious note, I remember fighter jets flying over the stadium in certain years. You wouldn't want a swarm of drones wandering in the flight path.

*If you get caught! ;)

To that extent, don't use DJI drones, they are easily traceable :))