On Monday, US authorities reported that there were no survivors in the crash of a small plane in the state of Virginia. The crash occurred a day after the unresponsive aircraft prompted the intervention of two fighter jets in Washington.
According to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the Cessna Citation crashed in a mountainous area about 275 kilometers southwest of the capital. Virginia State Police confirmed that rescue crews arrived at the scene near the town of Staunton about four hours after the crash, but no survivors were found, and search efforts were suspended.
Prior to the crash, two F-16 fighter jets chased the plane at high speed, generating a deafening noise in and around Washington, startling residents, and rattling windows and walls for miles around.
US President Joe Biden, who was at the White House and had been playing golf that day, was briefed on the incident, although it was not specified whether precautionary measures were taken.
According to the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), F-16 fighter jets were mobilized due to the unresponsiveness of a Cessna 560 Citation V private jet over Washington, DC, and northern Virginia.
The aircraft had taken off from Elizabethton, Tennessee, bound for Long Island MacArthur Airport in New York, according to the FAA. However, flight tracking on the website Flightradar24 indicated that the plane turned around after flying over Long Island and returned south, passing over Washington and Virginia.
Although authorities had not yet officially identified the people on board, comments from two family members provided preliminary information. According to public records, the aircraft was registered to Florida-based Encore Motors of Melbourne. The owner, John Rumpel, informed the Washington Post that “the whole family” was on board, including his daughter, a grandson, and the nanny.
This tragic accident has made it clear that there were no survivors and has sent shockwaves through the local community and across the country.