A U.S. F-16 fighter jet on Sunday caused a sonic boom in the Washington, D.C. area while trying to reach the unresponsive plane, which eventually crashed in Virginia, officials said.
A US official said an F-16 did not shoot down the plane and it is typical of the Federal Aviation Administration to request jet service when someone is flying dangerously.
According to a news release from the North American Aerospace Defense Command on the continental United States, the civilian pilot did not respond when the F-16 fighter attempted contact.
F-16 fighter jets "cleared to fly supersonic," resulting in a sonic boom being heard in the Washington, DC area.
The F-16 used the flare "to distract the pilot," the press release continued.
...A commercial aircraft, a Cessna 560 Citation V, was intercepted by a NORAD jet at approximately 15:20. It eventually crashed near the George Washington National Forest in Virginia. "The pilot did not respond and then the Cessna crashed near George Washington National Forest in Virginia," the press release said. "NORAD attempted to contact the pilot until the plane crashed."
The plane, with four people on board, exceeded its intended destination by 315 miles before it crashed, investigative sources said.
Virginia State Police told that as of Sunday evening, state and local officials were still investigating.
At approximately 3:50 p.m., state police were called. Officials said a plane could crash in the Staunton/Blue Ridge Parkway area. Nothing has been found at this time.
The National Transportation Safety Board announced on Twitter that it was investigating the accident. The military aircraft set off a sonic boom that was heard throughout the Washington, DC metropolitan area.
"We are aware of reports from communities throughout the metropolitan area of a loud 'boom' this afternoon," the Washington, D.C. Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency said on Twitter.
There is no danger at this time, officials added.
Earlier, the FAA said in a statement that a Cessna Citation crashed in southwestern Virginia on Sunday.
The aircraft departed from Elizabethton Municipal Airport in Elizabethton, Tennessee, and was en route to Long Island MacArthur Airport in New York.
The plane crashed in a mountainous area in a "sparsely populated area," according to the FAA. The US Capitol was put on "high alert" after a light aircraft flew near the area on Sunday afternoon, the US Capitol said in a statement.
“This afternoon, our officials worked closely with our federal partners to monitor an unresponsive pilot operating an aircraft near the metropolitan area. has been temporarily put on high alert," the statement said.
The US Secret Service said it had not changed its position on President Joe Biden's security after the incident. Biden played golf at the Andrews Air Force Base golf course near Joint Base Andrews, Maryland.
The incident "had no impact on the Secret Service," spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said in a statement Sunday.
A White House official said the president was briefed on the incident.
source(CNN)
A US official said an F-16 did not shoot down the plane and it is typical of the Federal Aviation Administration to request jet service when someone is flying dangerously.
According to a news release from the North American Aerospace Defense Command on the continental United States, the civilian pilot did not respond when the F-16 fighter attempted contact.
F-16 fighter jets "cleared to fly supersonic," resulting in a sonic boom being heard in the Washington, DC area.
The F-16 used the flare "to distract the pilot," the press release continued.
...A commercial aircraft, a Cessna 560 Citation V, was intercepted by a NORAD jet at approximately 15:20. It eventually crashed near the George Washington National Forest in Virginia. "The pilot did not respond and then the Cessna crashed near George Washington National Forest in Virginia," the press release said. "NORAD attempted to contact the pilot until the plane crashed."
The plane, with four people on board, exceeded its intended destination by 315 miles before it crashed, investigative sources said.
Virginia State Police told that as of Sunday evening, state and local officials were still investigating.
At approximately 3:50 p.m., state police were called. Officials said a plane could crash in the Staunton/Blue Ridge Parkway area. Nothing has been found at this time.
The National Transportation Safety Board announced on Twitter that it was investigating the accident. The military aircraft set off a sonic boom that was heard throughout the Washington, DC metropolitan area.
"We are aware of reports from communities throughout the metropolitan area of a loud 'boom' this afternoon," the Washington, D.C. Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency said on Twitter.
There is no danger at this time, officials added.
Earlier, the FAA said in a statement that a Cessna Citation crashed in southwestern Virginia on Sunday.
The aircraft departed from Elizabethton Municipal Airport in Elizabethton, Tennessee, and was en route to Long Island MacArthur Airport in New York.
The plane crashed in a mountainous area in a "sparsely populated area," according to the FAA. The US Capitol was put on "high alert" after a light aircraft flew near the area on Sunday afternoon, the US Capitol said in a statement.
“This afternoon, our officials worked closely with our federal partners to monitor an unresponsive pilot operating an aircraft near the metropolitan area. has been temporarily put on high alert," the statement said.
The US Secret Service said it had not changed its position on President Joe Biden's security after the incident. Biden played golf at the Andrews Air Force Base golf course near Joint Base Andrews, Maryland.
The incident "had no impact on the Secret Service," spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said in a statement Sunday.
A White House official said the president was briefed on the incident.
source(CNN)
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