US fighter jets were scrambled at supersonic speed on Sunday to intercept an unresponsive plane that had entered restricted airspace over Washington DC, causing a loud sonic boom heard across the region.
The F-16 jets were deployed after the Cessna Citation aircraft failed to respond to authorities. The plane later crashed in a rural area of Virginia after a rapid descent. Police and rescuers reached the wreckage near the George Washington National Forest on foot and confirmed no survivors were found. Four people were reportedly on board.
Military officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the plane was not shot down and the fighter jets did not cause the crash. The North American Aerospace Defense Command (Norad) confirmed the aircraft were authorised to travel at supersonic speeds, resulting in the sonic boom. Norad also stated that flares were used in an attempt to alert the pilot.
Richard Levy, a retired captain and pilot instructor, suggested the Cessna likely lost cabin pressure, leading to hypoxia. He explained that the depressurisation may have occurred gradually, causing those on board to lose consciousness without realising the danger.
The plane took off from Elizabethton, Tennessee, heading to Long Island, New York, but turned around and flew south over Washington before crashing near Montebello, Virginia. John Rumpel, owner of the company that registered the plane, told the New York Times that his daughter, two-year-old granddaughter, and her nanny were on board, along with the pilot. He expressed hope that they did not suffer.
President Joe Biden was briefed on the incident. The crash has drawn comparisons to the 1999 Learjet crash that killed golfer Payne Stewart and five others after a loss of cabin pressure.
