Here’s Why You’ll Be Seeing More Copters Flying Over South Jersey

You will be noticing more helicopter traffic is the skies over South Jersey beginning today through late April during the training of aircrews from the Coast Guard Air Station in Atlantic City.

The day and night training is part of the qualification process for newly assigned pilots to the unit, which is responsible for national airspace security missions over the nation’s capital and other critical areas across the country.

The program requires instructors and crews from Air Station Atlantic City to fly at least two flights nearly every day over six weeks.

Coastal southern New Jersey was chosen for the training through negotiations with the Federal Aviation Administration and selected with an emphasis on minimizing noise impact to the community and staying clear of commercial and general aviation traffic.

At the same time, Air Station Atlantic City will have two search-and-rescue response crews on duty 24 hours a day to conduct operational and training missions.

“This training is absolutely crucial for aircrews to safely train and ultimately learn these critical national security mission skill sets,” said Lt. Mark Bruno, a helicopter pilot and spokesman at Air Station Atlantic City. “We greatly appreciate the incredible support and understanding from the community during this annual event.”