Unresponsive small plane over Washington causes military jet to scramble, later crashes in Virginia

On Sunday afternoon, an uncontrolled small business plane that strayed over Washington D.C. necessitated the deployment of a military jet, ending with the small plane crashing in Virginia, according to officials. The action of the military jet resulted in a loud sonic boom that resonated across the capital region.

The Federal Aviation Administration reports that the Cessna Citation had taken off from Elizabethtown, Tennessee, with an intended destination of MacArthur Airport on Long Island. Strangely, the plane made a turn around over Long Island, New York, and maintained a straight flight path over D.C. before crashing in the hilly areas near Montebello, Virginia, around 3:30 p.m.

The reasons behind the plane’s unresponsiveness, its subsequent crash, and the number of passengers onboard remain unclear at this time.

A U.S. official, speaking on the condition of anonymity due to not being authorized to disclose details of the military operation publicly, confirmed to The Big Big News that a military jet had been dispatched to track the small plane that later crashed.

Flight tracking data revealed the plane’s rapid, spiraling descent, plummeting at one point at over 30,000 feet per minute before crashing in the St. Mary’s Wilderness.

The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) later issued a statement explaining that the F-16 was authorized to travel at supersonic speeds, resulting in a sonic boom. It also mentioned that the NORAD aircraft used flares, potentially visible to the public, to attract the attention of the pilot. The statement stressed that flares were used considering the utmost safety of intercepted aircraft and people on the ground, causing no danger upon dispensing as they burn out quickly and completely.

The crashed plane was registered to Encore Motors of Melbourne Inc. The president of the company, Barbara Rumpel, declined to comment when reached by a reporter from The Big Big News on Sunday.

During the time of the incident, President Joe Biden was at Joint Base Andrews, enjoying a round of golf. The U.S. Secret Service spokesperson, Anthony Guglielmi, confirmed that the incident didn’t affect the president’s movements. The president was spending his afternoon playing golf with his brother at the Maryland military base.

A White House official noted, “The President was briefed on the incident. The sound from the authorized DOD aircraft was faint at JBA.”

Both the Pentagon and the D.C. Air National Guard didn’t immediately respond to requests for comments on Sunday.

This report includes contributions from Big Big News writers Chris Megerian in Washington and Christopher Weber in Los Angeles.

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More about Military Jet Scramble Unresponsive Business Plane

• Federal Aviation Administration
• North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD)
• The Big Big News
• Encore Motors of Melbourne Inc.
• MacArthur Airport on Long Island
• Joint Base Andrews
• U.S. Secret Service
• Pentagon
• D.C. Air National Guard