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It was really close...
Officials Weighed Shooting at Errant Plane
By LARA JAKES JORDAN, Associated Press Writer 37 minutes ago As a wayward Cessna flew deep in restricted airspace, national security officials were on the phone discussing whether to implement the last line of defense: shooting it down. The single-engine Cessna that prompted a frenzied evacuation of the White House, Capitol and Supreme Court on Wednesday veered away from downtown landmarks just before that decision needed to be made. But it was a close call. One senior Bush administration counterterrorism official said it was "a real finger-biting period because they came very close to ordering a shot against a general aircraft." "How many more seconds away or minutes - it was within a very small window where there would have been the decision," said the official, who spoke only on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter. Administration officials spent Thursday reviewing the bizarre series of events involving the small plane, which was carrying a pilot and a student pilot from Pennsylvania to an air show in North Carolina. It entered restricted airspace and then continued flying toward highly sensitive areas, prompting evacuations of tens of thousands of people as military aircraft scrambled to intercept it. Hundreds of planes have encroached on the airspace since the Sept. 11 attacks, but none is believed to have gone so far - within three miles of the White House. Lt. Col. Tim Lehmann, one of two F-16 fighter pilots who tracked the Cessna, said he was prepared to use deadly force. He said he realized how serious the situation became when he looked at the Cessna and saw the Washington Monument in the background. "We may have been on the cusp of some kind of engagement," Lehmann said. "I don't know how close we came." A response system put in place after the attacks, coordinated in part by the Homeland Security Department's classified operations center, alerted other areas of the federal government to the incoming plane. Security forces at individual facilities and agencies decided on a case-by-case basis whether to evacuate or raise their alert level. Alert levels at the White House and the Capitol were raised to their highest level - red - at the height of the frenzy. President Bush, biking at the Patuxent Wildlife Research Center in Beltsville, Md., was unaware of the midday scare as it was occurring. His security detail knew of the raised threat level but did not tell him. White House press secretary Scott McClellan said that a review of how the situation was handled was being conducted. But he said Bush was not upset that he was not filled in. "The president has a great amount of trust in his security detail," McClellan said. "If there are any improvements that need to be made, they will be made." Immediately after the Cessna entered the restricted 30-mile radius Air Defense Identification Zone at 11:28 a.m. EDT, authorities activated the Domestic Events Network to share information as they tracked the plane. The network, a conference call of officials from the Homeland Security Department, Customs and Border Protection, the Pentagon, the Federal Aviation Administration and a handful of other agencies, lasted until the Cessna landed just over an hour later. Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld was apprised of the situation as it unfolded. He is among a small handful of top Pentagon officials who can order a shootdown. The president also may give such an order. Pentagon officials sought to play down the incident, saying the small plane was not seen as a serious threat and did not come close to being shot down. Homeland Security spokesman Brian Roehrkasse declined to comment on how close it was. Brian Jenkins, counterterrorism analyst for the RAND Corp. think tank, agreed the threat from the Cessna was limited. "The quantity of explosives that you can pack in a little Cessna is not the quantity of explosives you see placed in these big truck bombs," Jenkins said. "In terms of explosives, it probably could not do that much damage." However, government officials also had to consider the possibility it was carrying chemical or biological weapons. A relatively small amount of either could have devastating effects. Customs officials scrambled a Black Hawk helicopter and a Cessna Citation jet at 11:47 a.m. to intercept the plane and were joined a few minutes later by two Air National Guard F-16 fighter jets. The Cessna pilot appeared confused by the aircraft escort and did not respond to repeated signals ordering the plane to turn away. The F-16s fired four warning flares before the Cessna finally veered west and away from the secure zone. They landed safely at an airport in Frederick, Md. Officials Weighed Shooting at Errant Plane -- Jay Honeck Iowa City, IA Pathfinder N56993 www.AlexisParkInn.com "Your Aviation Destination" |
#2
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"Jay Honeck" wrote in message Officials Weighed Shooting at Errant Plane By LARA JAKES JORDAN, Associated Press Writer 37 minutes ago As a wayward Cessna What really amazes me is that there will apparently be no certificate action taken against these two nimrods. Not only did they barge right into probably the best known restricted/prohibited airspace in the world, but, according to one of the scrambled F16 pilots, they continued on this errant course for several minutes while the interceptors were crossing paths and ejecting flares. What in God's name did they think was going on? Just how stupid do you have to be? |
#3
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I'm sure there'll be action against the pilot. The FAA won't
just let it slide. "John Gaquin" wrote in message ... "Jay Honeck" wrote in message Officials Weighed Shooting at Errant Plane By LARA JAKES JORDAN, Associated Press Writer 37 minutes ago As a wayward Cessna What really amazes me is that there will apparently be no certificate action taken against these two nimrods. Not only did they barge right into probably the best known restricted/prohibited airspace in the world, but, according to one of the scrambled F16 pilots, they continued on this errant course for several minutes while the interceptors were crossing paths and ejecting flares. What in God's name did they think was going on? Just how stupid do you have to be? |
#4
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What really amazes me is that there will apparently be no certificate
action taken against these two nimrods. Why do you say that? I would expect at least a suspension. -- Jay Honeck Iowa City, IA Pathfinder N56993 www.AlexisParkInn.com "Your Aviation Destination" |
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Not so sure. Remember that guy in the Mooney that flew over LaGuardia
airport, down the East River in New York City, finally told on the radio of his error, then decides to take a little spin around the Statue of Liberty for some sightseeing while a helicopter was awaiting a few miles south to escort him? Well, he's still flying and was flying within a week after this happened. Unless someone knows something specific my anecdotal evidence shows that a front-page news grabber screw-up does not guarantee certificate action. Marco "Jay Honeck" wrote in message news:QH0he.76190$NU4.65923@attbi_s22... What really amazes me is that there will apparently be no certificate action taken against these two nimrods. Why do you say that? I would expect at least a suspension. -- Jay Honeck Iowa City, IA Pathfinder N56993 www.AlexisParkInn.com "Your Aviation Destination" Posted Via Usenet.com Premium Usenet Newsgroup Services ---------------------------------------------------------- ** SPEED ** RETENTION ** COMPLETION ** ANONYMITY ** ---------------------------------------------------------- http://www.usenet.com |
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"Marco Leon" mmleon(at)yahoo.com wrote:
Well, he's still flying and was flying within a week after this happened. Unless someone knows something specific my anecdotal evidence shows that a front-page news grabber screw-up does not guarantee certificate action. I'm glad that the news coverage will have no impact on the penalty; why should it? But the TSA has been mandating 30 day suspensions for ADIZ violations. Even if the FAA wanted to resist this (not that there's any reason to do so), they can do nothing for the TSA but ask "how far over do you want me to bend?" The one wildcard in this is the NASA form. But I'm sure that issue already arisen, as *some* previous ADIZ violators must have completed one. I just don't know the outcome. In the case of the NYC tourist, he "only" violated class B airspace. That's a dramatically different thing from violating the useless ADIZ, at least in the minds of those hunkering down. I *am* surprised that he was flying again w/in a week, but I've no idea what other circumstances surrounded that. Perhaps he NASA-formed his way out. Perhaps he was given a remedial checkride instead of a suspension? I simply don't know. - Andrew |
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"Marco Leon" mmleon(at)yahoo.com wrote in message ... front-page news grabber screw-up does not guarantee certificate action. Marco Actually, it is pretty amazing how little coverage this has had here in Michigan. You have to really dig to find anything about it... |
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Blueskies wrote:
Actually, it is pretty amazing how little coverage this has had here in Michigan. You have to really dig to find anything about it... It may be just me, but I think that's encouraging. George Patterson "Naked" means you ain't got no clothes on; "nekkid" means you ain't got no clothes on - and are up to somethin'. |
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John Gaquin wrote: "Jay Honeck" wrote in message Officials Weighed Shooting at Errant Plane By LARA JAKES JORDAN, Associated Press Writer 37 minutes ago As a wayward Cessna What really amazes me is that there will apparently be no certificate action taken against these two nimrods. Not only did they barge right into probably the best known restricted/prohibited airspace in the world, but, according to one of the scrambled F16 pilots, they continued on this errant course for several minutes while the interceptors were crossing paths and ejecting flares. What in God's name did they think was going on? Just how stupid do you have to be? Maybe they were told the wrong vector by controllers. Or maybe they were Homeland Security agents to test the system? Just kidding. |
#10
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