Brazil to declare no-fly zone over World Cup stadi

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Brazil to declare no-fly zone over World Cup stadi

Brazil to declare no-fly zone over World Cup stadiums

Brasilia, Brazil: The Brazilian Air Force will declare no-fly zones over World Cup stadiums to prevent terrorist attacks during this year's soccer tournament, but there's a catch: it can't shoot down intruders, for now.

By law, Brazil's military can only shoot at unresponsive civilian planes on drug trafficking routes near its borders, but not over densely populated urban areas where games will be played in 12 cities.

The Air Force is asking the Brazilian government to change the shoot-down law to allow effective defense of the air space during the 64 games of the June 12-July 13 global soccer tournament, said Air Force Brigadier Antonio Carlos Egito at a news conference on Friday.

In the meantime, the anti-aircraft guns to be deployed near the stadiums cannot be fired at a plane flying into a no-fly zone, said Egito, the military chief of air traffic over Brazil.

The Air Force and civilian aviation regulator ANAC announced that for security reasons commercial flights will not be allowed to land at eight airports that are within the 7.2 kilometer (4 nautical mile) no-fly radius around the stadiums.

The suspension will begin one hour before games kick off and last for 4 to 5 hours, though take-offs will not be restricted. They do not affect the country's main international airports.