A helicopter hovered above — and landed in — Point State Park Tuesday morning in Downtown Pittsburgh as part of Pennsylvania State Police preparations for the 2026 NFL Draft coming to the city this spring.
The state police helicopter touched down just before 9 a.m. for about eight minutes, according to Trooper Rocco Gagliardi.
“This pre-draft exercise was a crucial step for public safety planning, location layout familiarization and communications testing,” Gagliardi said in a statement.
Up to 1 million people are expected to swarm Downtown and Pittsburgh’s North Shore for the three-day April event, which several elected leaders have touted as possibly the largest gathering in city history.
Gagliardi told TribLive he had few additional details about Tuesday’s touchdown but said there would be future exercises and training in the Pittsburgh area leading up to the draft.
A state police spokesman in Harrisburg referred questions back to Gagliardi.
Officials from the NFL, the Pittsburgh Steelers and Visit Pittsburgh, the city’s tourism arm, held a closed-door “town hall” last month about the draft at Point Park University. Reporters were barred from attending.
Many details about the draft, which Detroit and Green Bay hosted in previous years, are still being finalized.
The event will span the North Shore, occupying several parking lots near Acrisure Stadium, and Point State Park.
The 36-acre park, which sits at the confluence of Pittsburgh’s three rivers, will be the site of some draft activities, as well as events commemorating the nation’s 250th anniversary in July.
The Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, which operates the park, declined comment Tuesday.
Steve Farago, the NFL’s director of event operations, has said nearby roads and parking lots will be closed “a few weeks” before the event while crews build up the stage and other elements.
The NFL will try to reduce closures “as much as possible,” Farago said, without offering specifics.
Some events will take place within Acrisure Stadium, the home of the Pittsburgh Steelers. The stadium is owned and leased by the Sports & Exhibition Authority.
Visit Pittsburgh has said a $10 million allocation in Pennsylvania’s 2026 budget to support the draft could help cover some public safety expenses.
The city also is putting up $1 million to support the event. Allegheny County chipped in $3 million.
A recently completed $3.4 million upgrade at Point State Park included repairing leaks and improving lighting at the iconic, 50-year-old fountain.
