Though the 87,473 fans at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium Saturday night were there to watch a football game, the weekend's significance as the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks could not be forgotten.
The Gators ran out of the tunnel waving American flags, Gainesville first responders were cheered for on the field and the marching band played an 8-minute halftime show of patriotic songs.
Then, late in the Gators' 39-0 rout of the University of Alabama at Birmingham Blazers, a low-flying plane soared over the stadium.
"It was very bad timing," said University Police Lt. William Gainey.
Under Federal Aviation Administration regulations, the 3-and-a-half-mile radius around stadiums that hold more than 30,000 people is considered a no-fly zone.
This regulation is typically respected during UF home football games, which can draw crowds of over 90,000.
Exceptions can be made, however, if federal air traffic controllers authorize the flight plan.
UPD officials were not given advance notice that the air space over the stadium would be used, a heads up that Gainey said would have been very helpful to stadium security.
"This entire season we are on heightened alert," he said - especially last weekend.
In response to this raised alert, UPD has taken several new security measures for gamedays.
For example, all stadium employees must undergo a new, rigorous background check before they are allowed access.
The Gainesville Regional Airport did not authorize any flight plans to fly over the stadium that day, according to spokeswoman Laura Aguiar.
UPD spokesman Brad Barber said the destination of the plane was unknown as of Tuesday afternoon.
