Downtown Los Angeles is being treated to a Super Bowl first this weekend, as the NFL is staging a dazzling light show conducted by drones in the air over the Los Angeles Convention Center. The display, which debuted Friday night and was scheduled three more times Saturday night, is being staged from the rooftop at the Los Angeles Convention Center and is visible from at least one mile out, organizers said.
The display features about 500 drones working in tandem to depict a number of Super Bowl-related images, including the team logos of the Los Angeles Rams and Cincinnati Bengals, a diagram of a typical play in traditional Xs and Os, and the Lombardi trophy given to the winner of the big game. Saturday's displays are scheduled for 7 p.m., 8:30 p.m. and 10 p.m. Drones are strictly forbidden from the air space over SoFi Stadium during Sunday's game.
According to the FAA, a Temporary Flight Restriction, or TFR, will be in effect from 2:30 to 8:30 p.m. Sunday, effective in a 30-mile circle around the Inglewood stadium and stretching up to 8,000 feet. The TFR will not impact regularly scheduled commercial flights at Los Angeles International Airport. Nor will it affect emergency, medical, public safety or military aircraft. But other pilots who enter the TFR area can face fines of more than $30,000, along with possible criminal charges, according to the FAA.
The skies over the stadium will be under the close watch of the North American Aerospace Defense Command, or NORAD, based at Tyndall Air Force Basein Florida. NORAD's Continental U.S. Region fighter jets will secure the air space as it does at most major events, including the Super Bowl, the president's State of the Union Address, major party political conventions and United Nations General Assemblies.