Light Aircraft Crashes After Passing Through Washington DC Without Permission

Fell in Nearby Mountainous Area... No Survivors Found
Chasing Fighter Jet Noise Causes Flood of Reports

A small aircraft flying without permission over the skies of Washington DC, the capital of the United States, crashed in a nearby mountainous area.

According to foreign media including the AP on the 4th (local time), around 3 p.m. that day, a Cessna 560 small aircraft that took off from Elizabethtown, Tennessee, and was heading to Long Island MacArthur Airport in New York suddenly turned for unknown reasons and flew over Washington DC without official authorization. The U.S. North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) stated, "At the time, the military attempted radio communication with the pilot of the aircraft, but there was no response."

On the 4th (local time), a search and rescue team is working in the mountainous area near Montebello, Virginia, where a Cessna 560 light aircraft crashed.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

In response, authorities immediately dispatched two F-16 fighter jets to intercept the aircraft. The sonic booms created by these jets flying at supersonic speeds caused a flood of reports to 911 centers in Washington DC and nearby Maryland and Virginia areas about loud noises. Some residents described the noise as "like an explosion," while others said, "The noise was so loud that it shook the houses," according to The New York Times (NYT).

The aircraft continued to fly across the skies of Washington DC and around 3:30 p.m. crashed in a mountainous area near Montebello, Virginia. Rescue authorities arrived at the crash site shortly afterward but have not found any survivors yet. According to the NYT, the aircraft is registered to Encore Motors, a used car dealership headquartered in Florida. The company owner, John Rumpel (75), stated that four people were on board the plane: his daughter, his 2-year-old granddaughter, a nanny, and the pilot. Rumpel added that they had been visiting his home in North Carolina for four days and were returning to their home in East Hampton, Long Island at the time.

So far, U.S. authorities have not officially announced how many people were on the aircraft, why it changed course to fly over Washington DC, or the cause of the crash. However, they explained that the crash was unrelated to the fighter jet dispatch and stated that further investigations will be conducted to determine the exact cause and circumstances of the accident.