NASA Administrator flew F-5 fighters in Fourth of July flyover after FAA rejected exemption request

Isaacman argued jets fell under government aircraft rules

NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman flew a vintage Northrop F-5 Tiger II jet at the Fourth of July air show over Washington, D.C., after the Federal Aviation Administration denied his request to operate the planes, deeming them “very high-risk” to people and property on the ground, according to documents posted online.

A representative for Isaacman petitioned the FAA in late June to allow four 1970s-built jets to join aircraft flying over the National Mall for America’s 250th birthday celebration. On June 30, the FAA denied the request for NASA and Air Force pilots to operate the F-5s, according to a six-page decision posted online. The document, signed by Hugh Thomas, a senior agency official who oversees the FAA’s flight standards division, cited issues including the jet’s flight controls, what could happen if pilots had to eject, and previous crashes.

Isaacman, an experienced aviator who has flown military aircraft for years, said in an interview with the Journal that there was no question about whether the flyover could be conducted safely, citing the number of F-5s in operation worldwide and their decades of service. He described the situation as a misunderstanding about the FAA’s role in an event like the 250th celebration and the aircraft.

While NASA officials sought exemptions from the FAA, Isaacman said using the F-5s for the flyover fell under different rules than those governing civilian aviation. Those rules, he said, take government aircraft out of the FAA’s jurisdiction. The NASA administrator said he had earlier put the planes under NASA control, though the titles for the planes were not transferred.

“It never should have been a civil operation from the get go,” Isaacman told the Journal.

Isaacman’s jet helped kick off the air show, which lasted for hours and included flyovers from a range of U.S. military fighter, bomber, and cargo aircraft. The NASA leader said the FAA’s administrator, Bryan Bedford, texted him before the flight to wish him well.

An FAA spokeswoman said Bedford was not available to comment Sunday. The agency spokeswoman said the FAA conducted a standard safety review of “privately owned, experimental aircraft” before they came under government ownership.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, who oversees the FAA, backed the agency’s safety decision and did not intervene, according to people familiar with the matter. The Transportation Department declined to comment.

The FAA’s aircraft registry on Sunday showed Isaacman’s company, JDI Holdings, owned three of the F-5 jets for which NASA sought an exemption, while another entity owned the fourth. The FAA spokeswoman said air show organizers had the responsibility to check who owned the jet fighters.

Isaacman initially planned to have passengers during the Saturday flight. He had invited Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, deputy chief of staff Dan Scavino, and senior Trump adviser Chris LaCivita to join him for the flyover in the back seat of the planes, but their rides were canceled, according to people familiar with the plans. Scavino posted on X in June that he was looking forward to doing the flyover, and Isaacman responded with an American flag emoji.

A spokesperson for Freedom 250, the President Trump-aligned group that planned events for the 250th celebration, referred questions about the flyover to NASA.

“It’s clear the president wanted the grandest flyover ever,” Isaacman said. “It certainly was.”