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Example I saw recently from a pilot I know:

He was inside a VIP TFR and had filed a flight plan, picked up a code , and was talking to atc. Inside the TFR he reached his destination and atc told him to change to advisory and squawk VFR. Later the FBO got a call saying the jets were nearly scrambled due to this mistake. Who’s at fault here ?

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    $\begingroup$ I’m assuming the squawk VFR while inside the TFR. Considering he received a call that the jets were almost scrambled because of him $\endgroup$
    – Pilot1234
    Commented Aug 6 at 8:02

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It depends on the wording of the TFR, but most likely they both made a mistake. Most VIP TFRs contain language similar to:

ALL ACFT MUST BE ON AN ACT IFR OR FILED VFR FLT PLAN WITH A DISCRETE CODE ASSIGNED BY AN AIR TFC CTL (ATC) FAC. ACFT MUST BE SQUAWKING THE DISCRETE CODE PRIOR TO DEP AND AT ALL TIMES WHILE IN THE TFR AND MUST REMAIN IN TWO-WAY RADIO COM WITH ATC.

Or for the smaller TFRs:

ACFT MUST BE SQUAWKING AN ATC DISCRETE BEACON CODE AT ALL TIMES WHILE IN THE TFR AND MUST REMAIN IN TWO - WAY RADIO COM WITH ATC.

In either case, it doesn't have any language about "Unless authorized by ATC." You need to have a discrete squawk code at all times in the TFR. ATC should not have told the pilot to squawk VFR, and the pilot should have refused the code change.

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  • $\begingroup$ Moreover, as I read 14 CFR 91.141 - The pilot's the one most likely to end up in the worst trouble, to the extent any trouble occurs. The regulation says "No person may operate an aircraft...contrary to the restrictions..." ATC - while not helpful here - wasn't operating the aircraft. $\endgroup$
    – William Walker III
    Commented Aug 9 at 12:40
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    $\begingroup$ From the VIP TFR: "EXC AS SPECIFIED BLW AND/OR UNLESS AUTH BY ATC IN CONSULTATION WITH THE AIR TFC SECURITY COORDINATOR VIA THE DOMESTIC EVENTS NETWORK (DEN) [blah blah blah, here are the exceptions]." So ATC can in fact authorize other non-specified exceptions. Whether they did the required coordination is not clear—probably they did not, given the FBO's comment—but how is the pilot to know that? The pilot fully complied with the TFR. $\endgroup$
    – randomhead
    Commented Aug 10 at 18:27
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    $\begingroup$ @randomhead That language is unusual in VIP TFRs, but it can appear and is why I was careful to say "most" and not "all." Of the 7 currently published VIP TFRs that require you to squawk a discrete code, only one has "Unless auth by atc" anywhere in it. I agree that the pilot technically complied with the TFR if that language appeared in the specific TFR in question, but a quick "Confirm N12345 squawk VFR in the TFR" would certainly be warranted. $\endgroup$
    – Chris
    Commented Aug 10 at 21:06
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    $\begingroup$ Fair points, touché. I do wonder if the difference is between POTUS VIP TFRs and VPOTUS and/or candidate VIP TFRs, because I'm only seeing one active POTUS TFR at the moment. (And then there's the George W. Bush TFR near Dallas Love, which also says "unless otherwise authorized by ATC.") $\endgroup$
    – randomhead
    Commented Aug 10 at 21:15
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A careful analysis of what you wrote suggests no one did anything wrong. The military jets were likely not scrambled because someone called ATC and found out the pilot did exactly what he was told to do.

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    $\begingroup$ Why couldn't it be an ATC mistake? Say civilian ATC was told to keep everybody under radio contact and positive control the controller or facility messed up. $\endgroup$
    – user71659
    Commented Aug 7 at 18:56
  • $\begingroup$ That's a different question, for which you have not included enough information to form an opinion. $\endgroup$
    – Juan Jimenez
    Commented Aug 14 at 19:33

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