Does the closure of airspace in North Carolina for the visits of President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris halt the Hurricane Helene rescue missions? No, that's not true: A Federal Aviation Administration spokesperson told Lead Stories that pilots involved in "aid and assistance" for hurricane recovery can fly through restricted areas if they plan the flight with air traffic control ahead of time. Temporary Flight Restrictions, put in place for security during the high-profile visits, restrict certain types of flights but not "disaster relief and recovery assistance."
The claim appeared in a post (archived here) on X, formerly Twitter, on October 3, 2024, under the following caption:
Joe Biden and Kamala Harris shutting down airspace over North Carolina so they can 'tour' the area
This stops all rescue missions going on right now
The text in the post's graphic said:
Good job at @joebiden @kamalaharris for putting up a temporary flight restriction hindering air operations. I spoke to a North Carolina Senator yesterday at the airport and he told me he told the White House directly do not come here because you will shut down the airspace. They really don't think about their actions as long as they get video of them pretending to care.
This is what the post looked like on X at the time of writing:
(Source: X screenshot taken on Fri Oct 4 15:27:58 2024 UTC)
The post provided no additional evidence to support its assertion that visits by Biden and Harris to North Carolina stop Helene rescue missions in the area.
Biden's visit
For Biden's October 2, 2024, visit, flight restrictions were in effect near the Greenville-Spartanburg and Asheville airports from 12:30 p.m. to 3:15 p.m. EDT, as well as near Raleigh. However, exceptions were made for Helene relief missions if coordinated before takeoff.
The restrictions and exceptions for the visit were included in an alert in the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)'s Notice to Air Missions (NOTAM) system (archived here). In part, the NOTAM from October 1, 2024, said:
Operating Restrictions and Requirements
No pilots may operate an aircraft in the areas covered by this NOTAM (except as described). ...
... aircraft providing aid / assistance for Hurricane Helene emergency response OPS [operations] MUST COORDINATE WITH ATC [air traffic control] PRIOR TO THEIR DEP [departure] AT 202-407-5826 TO AVOID POTENTIAL DELAYS.
At the time of writing, no NOTAM was available for the vice president's trip to North Carolina on October 5, 2024, but the same restrictions and requirements would be expected for Harris as with the president, according to the FAA.
Federal Aviation Administration
In an October 4, 2024, email to Lead Stories, an FAA spokesperson echoed the NOTAM for Biden's visit to North Carolina, saying exceptions were made for pilots involved in Helene relief missions. He said:
Pilots providing hurricane aid and assistance could fly in the restricted airspace provided they coordinate beforehand with air traffic control.
Additionally, the FAA issued a statement (archived here) on October 3, 2024, about "Operating Near Hurricane Helene Recovery Efforts." It said:
Immense recovery efforts are underway at the federal, state and local levels following Hurricane Helene and they require close coordination. The airspace around the recovery efforts in North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee have high levels of aviation activity, including small airplanes, helicopters, and drones. The FAA's goal at all times is to ensure safety and help facilitate this critical work.
At the request of local authorities or law enforcement, the Federal Aviation Administration can issue Temporary Flight Restrictions (TFRs) to ensure safety for aircraft conducting Hurricane Helene rescue and recovery activities. These TFRs do not ban aircraft, including drones, from providing disaster relief and recovery assistance. State and local authorities may also enact local restrictions. Relief operations, including civilian and volunteer operations, may access the restricted airspace if they are coordinated with emergency responders.
Read more
Additional Lead Stories fact checks of claims about Hurricane Helene can be found here.
