- Comment
From S.F.
11-10-3
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- "...military fighter jets scrambled to respond"
to a small plane entering restricted airspace around the white house, eh?
The small plane was identified as having entered the restricted zone of
23 miles from the capital and was intercepted when it was 10 miles from
the capital, which means it flew a distance of 13 miles while the fighter
jets were responding and becoming airborne. A Mooney M-20 has a cruising
speed of 172 mph...so, that means it took only 4.5 minutes for the US Air
Force F-16s to intercept it. And then there was September 11...
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- Small Plane Causes White House Security Scare
By Christina Ling
11-10-3
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- WASHINGTON (Reuters) -- A
small plane violated restricted airspace around Washington on Monday, causing
a brief security alert at the White House before military jets intercepted
it and steered it away, the U.S. Secret Service said.
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- President Bush and first lady Laura Bush were not present
during the scare, which prompted armed guards to take up positions on the
White House lawn.
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- Vice President Dick Cheney and White House Chief of Staff
Andrew Card were moved temporarily to a secure location as a precaution,
White House spokesman Scott McClellan said.
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- Secret Service spokesman Tom Mazur told Reuters the plane
violated restricted airspace around 11:15 a.m. EST and was diverted by
military fighter jets scrambled to respond to the security breach.
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- Mazur said Secret Service agents were interviewing the
pilot, who ultimately landed in Siler City, North Carolina. It was not
yet clear why he flew into the restricted zone, he said.
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- The Federal Aviation Administration identified the aircraft
as a single-engine, four-seat Mooney 20. The FAA referred additional questions
to the Secret Service.
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- There are two flight security rings around Washington
that were imposed after the Sept. 11, 2001, hijack attacks on New York
and Washington.
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- The first permits small aircraft to fly within 23 miles
of the capital if the pilot has prior approval from air traffic controllers
and if the aircraft is equipped with updated electronic identification
equipment.
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- The second zone prohibits any aircraft from within a
17-mile radius of downtown Washington unless it is a scheduled airline
service or a military, law enforcement or pre-approved medical flight.
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- In Monday's incident, government sources said the private
plane flying from north to south was identified immediately after violating
the outer restricted area.
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- In Colorado Springs, Colorado, a spokesman for the military's
North American Aerospace Defense Command said two F-16 fighter jets were
scrambled from Andrews Air Force Base near Washington and escorted the
plane -- apparently en route to Florida -- out of the prohibited zone.
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- One government source said the plane ventured into the
inner security ring and was diverted about 10 miles from downtown Washington.
There was nothing erratic about the flight pattern and the pilot followed
directions, the source said. The landing site was not disclosed.
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- "The fighters were right on his wings," the
official said.
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- Flight restrictions around Washington, which ban general
aviation operations at Washington's Ronald Reagan National Airport, have
had a severe effect on several regional airports and small aviation businesses.
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- The outer ring has been violated more than 600 times
since it was imposed last February and the inside restriction has been
breached far less often, the FAA said.
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- - Additional reporting by Steve Holland
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- http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml;jsessionid=MRQPUGNNZR0QICRBAEZ
SFEY?type=domesticNews&storyID=3791683
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