FAA clears Trump's Triumphal Arch as safe, then orders an 'eternal flame' to alert pilots

WASHINGTON, DC: The 250-foot-tall proposed United States Triumphal Arch is once again in the spotlight, with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) saying that the monument would require an “eternal flame” on top to alert nearby pilots.

The Triumphal Arch, which is also dubbed "Arc de Trump," has been controversial primarily due to its massive scale and its chosen location near sacred and historic sites.

Critics have also raised concerns over the bypassing of legal and congressional approval processes.

FAA requires an 'eternal flame' on Arch

After declaring that the Triumphal Arch would not prove hazardous, the FAA said that it would require an “eternal flame.”

“The FAA’s determination includes conditions for the Arch to be appropriately marked with a non-standard eternal flame on top of the structure and floodlight projectors pointed towards the Arch to make it noticeable for pilots,” an FAA spokesperson told The Hill on Saturday, September 19.

The FAA released a hazard study on Friday that found the proposed Triumphal Arch would not pose a danger to aircraft.

Safety experts reviewed the airspace and flight patterns around Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, along with operations at nearby military and public-use airports, before reaching the conclusion.

According to a New York Times report, the FAA acknowledged that the monument would need red obstruction lights, such as the light at the top of the Washington Monument.

However, it said that the structure would not be required to ​have them in its hazard report.

A letter written to the National Park Service (NPS) about the study specifies illumination of “eternal flames.”

It says that the searchlight projectors that would accompany the “eternal flame” should “provide an average illumination of at least 15 foot-candles (161.46 lux) over the top one-third of the structure.”

Controversial Triumphal Arch to become largest in the world

Officially envisioned as the "Great Triumphal Arch and Military Observation Deck," the structure is planned for Memorial Circle on Columbia Island.

Towering over the 220-foot Monumento a la Revolución in Mexico City and the 164-foot Arc de Triomphe in Paris, it would become the largest in the world once constructed.

The Arch would be built along the Arlington Memorial Bridge, which connects the North and South and represents the country’s reunification after the Civil War.

A veterans group launched a campaign against the project last week. The group said the Arch would be “entirely inappropriate” and close to “sacrilege” because it would block the view between the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington National Cemetery.

Notably, the National Park Service also said in an August assessment that the Arch could affect dozens of historic sites in Washington, including by blocking important views.