FAA proposes permanent flight restrictions over Mar-a-Lago

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) proposed a new rule Wednesday that would place permanent restrictions on what flights are permitted within a one-mile radius of Mar-a-Lago .

The proposed rule would “establish a flight restriction from the surface to 2,000 feet” above mean sea level “within a one NM radius of Mar-a-Lago Club.” These were temporary restrictions in Oct. 2025 amid heightened security concerns that the FAA now wants to make permanent.

“Aircraft would essentially be unable to use Runway 28R/10L,” the FAA wrote.

The runway is one of three available at President Donald J. Trump International Airport — formerly Palm Beach International Airport — but remains the airport’s main commercial runway.

Runway 28R/10L reportedly handled 86 flights a day in 2025.

The FAA will be accepting public comments through Oct. 2.

The agency has already enforced similar requests by the Secret Service to divert planes over Mar-a-Lago since the start of Trump’s second term, but residents of Palm Beach County complained at the time about the diversions.

“My house is filled with the smell of jet fuel,” Jane Jones, a resident of Palm Beach, told the county’s Citizens Committee during a 2025 hearing about the redirected planes.

Other residents complained about the possible health effects this could have on locals and what one person said was a “double-digit decrease in your property value.”

“Our white roof was white — it is now gray,” said a West Palm Beach resident. “Given the current circumstances, it will eventually get black.”

A 2020 study from the University of Washington reported “airport operations result in noise and air pollution, which are linked to many of the health outcomes experienced by airport communities.”

It added that evidence “found lower life expectancy and increased risk of various health problems, from stroke to heart disease to respiratory problems” for individuals living near airports.

Palm Beach County filed a lawsuit with a federal court over these restrictions, arguing similar claims from the residents at the 2025 hearing.

“Residents reported: being disturbed by aircraft noise as early as 6:00 a.m. and as late as 11:00 p.m.; an inability to converse outside due to aircraft noise; soot covering their properties; the smell of jet fuel permeating their homes; potential damage to the architectural features of historic homes,” the lawsuit said.

The pending lawsuit also claimed the FAA failed to follow proper procedures when instituting the initial no-fly zone over Mar-a-Lago — including a National Environmental Policy Act environmental review.