NAS Jacksonville Air Show grounds drones within 5 nautical miles October 15 to 18, surface to 15,000 feet
The FAA issued FDC NOTAM 6/8389 under 14 CFR 91.145 for the 2026 NAS Jacksonville Air Show. It closes a 5 nautical mile circle from the surface to 15,000 feet MSL in four daily windows from Thursday through Sunday, including Friday's practice show.
By Joel Kelly
Decision brief
If you want aerial video of the Blue Angels over NAS Jax, you cannot get it with a drone. The circle starts at the surface, LAANC does not override it, and only air traffic control can authorize a flight inside it during the listed hours. Outside those hours the restriction is off, but the usual airspace rules around the air station still apply. Recheck the NOTAM before you fly anywhere on Jacksonville's west side that week.
- Radius
- 5 NM, to 15,000 ft
- Windows
- Four days
- Authority
- 14 CFR 91.145
FDC 6/8389; centered at 30°14'02"N, 81°40'22"W
Thu noon to 5:30 p.m., Fri 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Sat and Sun 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. EDT
Aviation event restriction; ATC authorization only
The restriction
A 5-mile circle, four days of show hours.
The FAA issued FDC NOTAM 6/8389 on October 8 at 1621 UTC for the 2026 NAS Jacksonville Air Show, citing 14 CFR 91.145, the rule for aviation events. It covers a circle with a 5 nautical mile radius, about 5.75 statute miles, centered at 30°14'02"N, 81°40'22"W, on the Craig VORTAC's 236 degree radial at 10.5 nautical miles. The restriction runs from the surface up to and including 15,000 feet MSL. No pilot may operate an aircraft inside it unless air traffic control authorizes the flight. The NOTAM lists the air boss, Wayne Boggs, at 813-340-5623 and NAS Jacksonville tower at 904-542-2511 as the contacts for pilots.
The restriction is active in four windows, all Eastern time: noon to 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, October 15; 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Friday, October 16; and 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on both Saturday, October 17, and Sunday, October 18. The NOTAM gives the reason as aerial demonstrations. The Thursday and Friday windows fall before the public show days.
The show
Free admission, Blue Angels finale, practice day for base access holders.
The air show itself runs Saturday and Sunday, October 17 and 18, aboard NAS Jacksonville. Navy MWR Jacksonville says admission and parking are free with no tickets required, gates open at 9 a.m., and the show begins at 11 a.m., with the Air Force Thunderbirds on the bill and the Navy's Blue Angels as the finale. It says the Friday practice show is open to anyone with base access and their guests, and that spectators 18 and older must show a physical photo ID.
Before you fly
Surface to 15,000 feet. LAANC does not get you in.
A drone inside the circle during an active window breaks the restriction even at low altitude, because the restriction starts at the surface. LAANC cannot authorize a flight into a TFR. The same week, the FAA's drone-only notice for Daytona Beach, FDC 6/8298, runs noon to 6 p.m. Eastern each day from October 14 through 18. Its center is about 70 nautical miles south of the Jacksonville circle, so the two do not overlap, but a pilot working the Florida coast that week has two clocks to watch.
Source file
Verify the reporting
- FAA TFR: FDC NOTAM 6/8389, 2026 NAS Jacksonville Airshow Aerial Demonstrations, October 15 to 18, 2026 (issued October 8, 2026)
- FAA TFR list: active temporary flight restrictions (read October 8, 2026)
- FAA TFR: FDC NOTAM 6/8298, Daytona Beach, Florida, UAS public gathering, October 14 to 18, 2026
- Navy MWR Jacksonville: NAS Jax Air Show 2026 (dates, hours, admission, practice show)
- NAS Jax Air Show: official site
Continue on Drone Authority
Put the report to work
Continue this beat
More public safety reporting
Safety · October 5, 2026
Fleet Week and the California Capital Airshow close Bay Area and Sacramento skies to drones October 8 to 11
Rule watch · October 6, 2026
Police can now ask the FAA to close the sky to drones over big crowds. Ten of these TFRs are live this week, from ACL Fest to Pitt-NC State
Safety · October 7, 2026