How ‘America’s sweetheart’ protects the Super Bowl

SANTA CLARA, Calif. — The California National Guard’s 144th Fighter Wing is still guarding the skies. But this Sunday, their warning mission is on the world stage as they work to keep the skies safe during Super Bowl LX.

It’s a less visible part of a larger security effort to keep the Super Bowl safe. The Federal Aviation Administration has designated the 30 miles above and around Levi’s Stadium as restricted airspace for the Super Bowl, meaning planes are prohibited from flying there. NORAD, known officially as the North American Aerospace Defense Command, is responsible for monitoring the skies for planes or drones that might enter them.

The 144th Fighter Wing is on alert to respond if NORAD detects a potential threat and orders fighter jets into the sky within minutes to check it out. The pilots who fly the F-15s have practiced many times before the big game.

“Just like Super Bowl teams prepare before the game, we prepare and practice all the time,” Lt. Col. Daniel “Jinxy” Behrens, a pilot assigned to the 144th Fighter Wing, said in an interview.

If a plane or drone enters the airspace, a warning sounds and within minutes the F-15s take off. They fly fast and close to each other.

“I think you would be amazed how quickly someone can go from barn alert, maybe even sleeping, to on the air and on the radio doing intercept,” said Col. Joel “JP” Pauls, commander of the 144th Fighter Wing.

He said drones are increasingly at the center of protecting restricted airspace, such as that around the Super Bowl.

“I think there is an increase in drone activity in general, pretty much everywhere,” Pauls said. “And so that’s something that we’re really concerned about.”

NBC’s Courtney Kube joined 144th Fighter Wing pilots in the skies this week as they worked with the Civil Air Patrol to simulate the interception of an unknown aircraft flying in restricted airspace. During the mission, they searched for two Cessnas. In this case, the Cessnas were considered “friendly,” so the pilots worked to get their attention.

“I think I see it there,” Behrens said, noting that the Cessna was only 4 miles away.

“A lot of times it was someone who just wasn’t aware of it,” he said of plane pilots who flew in restricted airspace.

Once the fighter jet approaches, it flies in a circle around the aircraft it is attempting to escort out of the restricted airspace. The F-15 flashes its lights, swings its wings and maneuvers nearby while trying to contact the Cessna pilots on an emergency radio frequency.

The pilot warns that a fighter plane is approaching.

“It’s the United States Air Force, an armed fighter guarding the SIM. You’ve been intercepted,” he said. And the Cessnas are successfully escorted out of restricted airspace.

Even though the F-15s are armed and ready to eliminate a threat, the pilots who fly them say their goal is always to deescalate the situation.

“We are an armed aircraft, an air defense fighter, and they arm us with live missiles,” Behrens said. “So that’s part of the calm communication that we give them.”

The F-15 has also proven to be reliable. Called Eagle, the jet is “America’s sweetheart,” said Master Sgt. Sean Copus, avionics technician with the 144th Fighter Wing.

He has never been shot down in conflicts around the world.

“He’s undefeated in combat, 104 wins, zero losses,” Pauls said. “It’s a unique combination of speed, range, weapons, cargo and payload, as well as advanced avionics.”