Capital Evacuated

[VaSteve]

Hey Thom, you missed this article. :P Was it OK this time?





Confused Fliers Trigger Capital Scare
Blundering Plane Spurs Evacuations, F-16 Interception

By Michael E. Ruane and Spencer S. Hsu
Washington Post Staff Writers
Thursday, May 12, 2005; A01



Two lost aviators flying with outdated maps from a rural Pennsylvania airstrip triggered a red alert at the White House yesterday, along with the frantic evacuation of the Capitol and the Supreme Court, before they were intercepted by Air Force jets lobbing warning flares.

The 15-minute aerial encounter, watched by rapt workers in downtown Washington office buildings, turned out to be a blunder by confused fliers in a small plane, but it illustrated how easily potential danger can trip the capital's tightly wired alert systems.

As the aircraft bore down on Washington from the north and officials could not contact the pilot, the White House's internal threat level went from yellow to orange and then to red within four minutes, fighters were scrambled and occupants and visitors to the Capitol, the Supreme Court and the White House were sent scurrying for safety.

The aircraft flew over the vice president's residence, a senior federal security official said, came within moments of reaching the White House and was close to being shot down.

Alarms sounded and emergency lights went on in congressional office buildings about noon, as police shouted warnings and people hurried for exits and walked, or ran, down marble staircases and north toward Union Station, witnesses said.

Outside, sirens wailed and the sound of the jets could be heard overhead. "It was relatively orderly," said one Senate worker who fled the Capitol. "But there's still panic, there's always panic. You start to run faster than you think you can run."

Officials said 35,000 people were evacuated from the Capitol and adjacent office complexes. An additional 200 were eva cuated from the White House.

First lady Laura Bush and former first lady Nancy Reagan, who was visiting, were ushered to a bunker beneath the White House for safety, and Vice President Cheney was taken to a secure location, officials said. The president, who was riding his bicycle at the Patuxent Wildlife Research Center in suburban Maryland, was alerted by his security detail after the drama was over.

The two aviators were identified as Hayden L. "Jim" Sheaffer, 69, a truck driver from Lititz, Pa., north of Lancaster, and Troy Martin, 36, a vacuum cleaner system salesman from Akron, seven miles away. They were released without charges after authorities determined that they posed no security threat.

White House spokesman Scott McClellan said the government has very specific rules on when an intruding civilian aircraft can be shot down. Pentagon officials said Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld was contacted and available to execute a shoot-down order if necessary.

Capitol Police Chief Terrance W. Gainer said: "This guy probably came as close as he could come without getting shot out of the air."

Authorities said the plane's occupants were so clueless that when officials finally made radio contact and ordered the plane to divert, the flyers refused, asserting their right to proceed on their way.

It was only when the F-16s fired four bright flares across the plane's nose that the two men realized the gravity of their situation, officials said. The plane then veered northwest, out of town, escorted by the interceptors, security helicopters and a U.S. customs jet.

The aircraft, an old-fashioned white Cessna 150 that weighs about 1,000 pounds and has a top speed of 160 mph, was directed to the Frederick, Md., airport, where the men were detained for questioning.

In Pennsylvania, relatives and neighbors expressed shock that Martin and Sheaffer had wound up in so much trouble while on a flight to an air show in Lumberton, N.C. The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating what took place and could order sanctions.

Martin, who neighbors said was learning to fly, was at the controls, according to investigators. He had less than 30 hours of flying instruction, officials said.

Sheaffer, who according to his sister is a seasoned pilot, was in the passenger seat. He has been flying since his late twenties, said his sister, Jan Gall.

Authorities said the men probably erred because they were using old maps that did not show the latest restricted airspace around Washington, including new limits set after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

"They were lost and had no idea where the hell they were," said one federal law enforcement source close to the investigation. "They were confused and scared."

But Phil Boyer, president of the Frederick-based Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, a 400,000-member pilot education and lobbying group -- of which, Boyer said, Martin is a member -- said there "was no excuse" for the mistake.

"We send hundreds of e-mails and messages a year giving pilots instructions on how to fly here," Boyer said. The likely penalty for a pilot who strays into restricted airspace is license suspension for 30 to 120 days, he said.

For the most part, federal officials said the response was appropriate. But D.C. Mayor Anthony A. Williams (D) was upset that he was not notified until the incident was almost over. He said that city officials need to be immediately told of such intrusions.

The men had departed at 10:58 a.m. from the small airport at Smoketown, about 12 miles from their homes in the middle of Lancaster County farm country.

Twenty-five minutes later, an FAA air traffic controller monitoring airspace around Baltimore noticed a small aircraft 45 miles north of the Capitol heading straight for Washington's restricted airspace. The pilot was not in contact with controllers as required for private fliers. FAA controllers immediately alerted agencies on the Domestic Events Network, a special communications system used to notify all agencies that protect the capital's airspace.

At 11:28 a.m., trackers spotted the plane entering the Air Defense Identification Zone, the 2,000-square-mile area around Washington that requires private planes to remain in radio contact with controllers. The plane entered the zone from an area 30 miles north of Reagan National Airport, but its radio was not tuned to the right frequency.

Shortly after 11:30, the Cessna turned east toward Baltimore, then moments later turned south. At 11:47, the Customs and Border Protection agency scrambled a Black Hawk helicopter and Citation jet from Reagan National Airport to intercept the plane. Authorities said the Black Hawk reached the Cessna first, at 11:56, followed by the Citation minutes later. Neither could get the Cessna's attention.

As the Cessna closed in, flying at 2,500 feet, alert levels started to jump across the city. At 12:03 p.m., the White House went to code red, with the aircraft within three miles.

The customs aircraft, meanwhile, had been frantically trying to get the Cessna's attention. The crews of one or both aircraft held up a sign in their cockpits bearing the radio frequency the Cessna should tune to, officials said. Those on the small plane apparently saw the sign, made radio contact, but refused at first to turn back, officials said.

"No," the federal pilots ordered, "this is federal law enforcement. You will land that aircraft." Finally, at 12:06 p.m., flying over Northwest Washington, the Air Force fighters arrived, fired warning flares, and the Cessna flyers realized that they were in trouble.

Five minutes later, the White House alert dropped to yellow, and a 12:14 p.m. the "all-clear" was issued there. The Cessna landed at the Frederick airport at 12:37 p.m.

© 2005 The Washington Post Company

[jyl]

Those GA pilots seem pretty bull-headed. Ignore a Blackhawk, customs aircraft, signs, radio contact? I think a nice long license suspension is in order, at the least.

[350HP930]

Damn, what a couple of morons.

[FrayAdjacent911]

Originally posted by 350HP930
Damn, what a couple of morons.

+1

[bryanthompson]

surely some social disadvantage is to blame for this. Supe, care to chime in?

[928ram]

Something just doesn't click here. Too stupid. You know how they say if it sounds to good to be true....? Well they sound too stupid to be true.
A Sidewinder would've been an act of mercy.

[Tricky D]

Yeah, you'd think they would be smart enough to realize that if you can see the White House, you're too close!

It will be interesting to see what their side of the story is. At the least, the instructor pilot should have his rating suspended, and the student pilot needs a lot of remedial chart reading. What part of "Restricted Airspace" did they not understand?

[350HP930]

Originally posted by bryanthompson
surely some social disadvantage is to blame for this. Supe, care to chime in?

So true, they were probably a couple of mentally challenged and wealthy right wingers that could care less what the guvmint was trying to tell them they could and couldn't do with their private property.

[304065]

Hey 350, you do a pretty good impression of Jim.

I gotta chime in here, as a former lawyer and 3rd-generation aviator.

How freaking stupid do you have to be? The ENTIRE focus of pilots in the DC/MD/VA area over the last couple years has been the restrictive airspace around the "DC-3" airports. AOPA even posts graphical maps of the frequently changing TFR areas around those airports. When you call for a weather briefing, the very beginning of the tape has information about intercept procedures.

So let's add it up. . . violated TFR. . . screwed up intercept procedures. . . didn't monitor 121.5 "guard" frequency when a blackhawk showed up. . .

Sorry, while I realize these guys had the best of intentions, flying is not an activity that exists in a vacuum outside of the regulatory climate.

Finally, I think it would have taken guns, not a missile, to shoot down the C-150. I got my private in one (N714KX) and the heat signature is about as strong as a panting dog, not like the tailpipe from a jet.

Also, that article is flat wrong, the C150 has a wide-open cruise speed of not better than 115 mph. It might do 160 if you put it into a power dive, LOL.

[Dantilla]

As a private pilot, this story amazes me. After Sept 11, the rules became very goofy. Different agencies demanding different things of the FAA. Lots of new "temporary flight restrictions" that they would not print on the maps! Can't fly here, but we're not going to show you where "here" is.

I quit flying for a couple of years until things settled down.

Things have settled down. I'm actually delivering a 911 door to a fellow Pelicanhead today with a Cessna 150.

Every pilot with a brain knows about the serious consequences of flying in a restricted area. Every pilot with a brain knows there is plenty of restricted area around our nations Capitol. The restricted areas are now printed on the maps. Every pilot with a brain knows that you will be intercepted by fighter jets if you do something stupid.

It's one thing to accidentally clip a corner of airspace. Stupid, but forgivable. There are no orange traffic cones in the sky. Occasionally, air traffic controllers will see someone enter, and quickly turn away from restricted airspace. But to head directly through the heart of the nations Capitol?

A student pilot is one thing. But an instructor? I don't get it.

[Dantilla]

The only way a C-150 will see 160mph is if it gets towed by a Bonanza.

[Superman]

Originally posted by bryanthompson
surely some social disadvantage is to blame for this. Supe, care to chime in?

Indeed. I think 350's remark is likely true, but assuming these guys were not right-wingers celebrating their important freedoms, there are still many other explanations. For example, perhaps budget cuts in education have pervaded the aviation industry.

[gaijindabe]

"Authorities said the plane's occupants were so clueless that when officials finally made radio contact and ordered the plane to divert, the flyers refused, asserting their right to proceed on their way."

No amount of education is going to work if you are that thick headed!

[stevepaa]

As I understand it, no charges against these guys?
Is that right? How does that balance with the foreigner and his suitcases arrested, and some on this board said he should be put in prison?
No outrage against them?

[Tricky D]

No criminal charges, perhaps, but the FAA will most likely level some sanctions on them.

Personally, they should be flogged for being so STUPID! It is the pilot's responsibility to have current charts, so I don't buy the "we were using outdated charts" argument.

They just gave General Aviation a black eye. Hopefully this will not renew the calls for even stricter control of GA aircraft.

[304065]

Steve, what part of this don't you interpret as outrage?

[stevepaa]

Well, we are just calling them stupid and maybe they should get their licenses suspended. I guess that is outrage.

However, prison or worse was called for before;

"The nut case goes up to the US Capital with two suitcases and refuses to communicate with the police officers other than to say "I want to talk to your President" or move away and you feel that he deserves anything other than a prison sentenance?

Please try this type of stunt in Bejing or Moscow and see what their reaction is! They would shoot him then run the suitcases over with a tank then deliver the pieces to the Embassy. Cannot say that I disagree with them either.

Prison would give him time to think about the folly of his ways and keep him from doing it again for a while"

[mattdavis11]

I thought this was going to be about $$$$$$. try ol, not al. Liberals.... can't fly right, nor spell when it's given to them in the article.

[VaSteve]

I grew up here in DC. Ever since I was a little boy, I knew they would shoot you down if you got to close to the white house. They should have done it as an example.

Thom? Thom? Where are you.

[bryanthompson]

He'll be here in a little bit. Apparently he had a flight lesson yesterday