ABC News is reporting that officials are telling them the F-16 pilots saw the Citation pilot passed out.
“The jets, which were deployed from Joint Base Andrews, saw that the pilot of the aircraft had passed out, this official said. The plane subsequently crashed.”
This is a rapidly developing story. We will continue to update as we find out more.
UPDATE: 6:35 PM EST—
Official NORAD statement:
TYNDALL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. – In coordination with the Federal Aviation Administration, NORAD F-16 fighter aircraft responded to an unresponsive Cessna 560 Citation V aircraft over Washington, D.C., and northern Virginia on June 4, 2023.
The NORAD aircraft were authorized to travel at supersonic speeds and a sonic boom may have been heard by residents of the region.
During this event, the NORAD aircraft also used flares – which may have been visible to the public – in an attempt to draw attention from the pilot. Flares are employed with highest regard for safety of the intercepted aircraft and people on the ground. Flares burn out quickly and completely and there is no danger to the people on the ground when dispensed.
The civilian aircraft was intercepted at approximately 3:20 p.m. Eastern Time. The pilot was unresponsive and the Cessna subsequently crashed near the George Washington National Forest, Virginia. NORAD attempted to establish contact with the pilot until the aircraft crashed.
Also, the Capital was placed on elevated alert during the incident, but not its highest alert level.
FL media reporting that the daughter, granddaughter and nanny of the Director of the company were on board with the pilot
They had been travelling home from Elizabethton in Tennessee to Long Island after a family visit.
The plane (exact site not yet identified) is reported to have crashed in a mountain region south west of Virginia.
Later media reports say the plane turned around from over Long Island to Washington, descending at 20k feet a minute before crashing ( which would make survival impossible).
NHR Taxi Aereo Embraer EMB-110 Bandeirante (ID unconfirmed yet) experienced an inflight opening of the aft cargo door. On board the charter flight was Brazilian music combo Tierry. The pilots safely returned to land and no one was injured.
When l lived in Bkk, l had an apartment in Thana City, Samut Prakarn. Over the course of the 2 years living there, Thailand opened a new airport, and you guessed it, Thana City was right under the flight path. I quickly got used to the sound of the jets flying over, and never worried about one crashing into my building.
I remember a bit of uproar when the site for Suvarnabhumi was chosen.
I had a similar tale as many years ago I was staying in Hong Kong for a month and found a flat to rent at a very generous price. Turns out it was so cheap as it was right under the approach path of Kai Tak. I never forgot the sounds of the 747’s and better still the rooftop of the complex had a small garden area and I used to go up there and sink a few beers on a garden chair and you could almost touch the wheels of the aircraft it felt like. The passengers on the aircraft would wave at you and the noise and engine draft was a bit of a buzz.
Suvarnabhumi made a great change from Don Muang, even though it had developed cracks in the floor before it was officially opened.
Don Muang is still in use as a domestic hub. It will remain an airport even though the urban sprawl now surrounds it. Don Muang is owned by the Thai air force and their base is on the far side of the runways. Incidentally there is an 18 hole golf course between the 2 runways, l have played there a couple of times. There is a siren that goes off when a plane is taxiing through the middle, and of course the plane has right of way. I nearly got knocked off a tee at one stage by a 747 backwash taking off.
My first trip to Don Muang was like going to the country, with nothing but rice paddies and water buffalo in every direction.
It’s the largest LCC airport in the world and pretty much only serves LCC’s these days. Air Asia have made it their home and have hundreds of flights daily in and out to many International destinations
Correct. That was an absolute balls up and a lot of information pertaining to the repairs has been kept hidden even to senior management since that date. I guess one day it will come out
Absolutely but I can’t blame them. It’s a enviable record that other airlines constantly acknowledge and why Qantas is held in very high regards by the industry.
Was also only 9 years old and the cost to replace it probably was factored in to it but the old girl went around for a few more years before being sent to the scrapyard
Although it is 20 or so years since l played that golf course, just over the southern (city side) boundary was parked an old French Caravelle, one of the first commercial jet airliners built in the early 1960’s. I have no idea how long it had sat there baking and rusting away under the tropical sun, but it still looked an elegant craft.
