Wayward US Plane's Pilot Was Slumped Over, Apparently Unconscious: Report

Washington, June 5 (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 6th Jun, 2023 ) :US aviation officials on Monday were investigating the fatal crash of an "unresponsive" private plane that strayed over the nation's capital and prompted the scrambling of F-16 fighter jets.

The Cessna Citation slammed into mountainous terrain Sunday afternoon in Virginia, some 170 miles (275 kilometers) southwest of Washington, killing all four people aboard, officials said.

The crash came shortly after the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) dispatched F-16s to intercept an "unresponsive" Cessna 560 Citation V aircraft over Washington, whose airspace is tightly restricted.

According to The Washington Post, the pilot of one of the F-16s could see the pilot of the Cessna slumped over in the cockpit -- suggesting a loss of consciousness due to depressurization of the aircraft.

NORAD said flares were deployed to try to draw the attention of the pilot but there was no response and the private plane eventually crashed near the George Washington National Forest in Virginia.

"NORAD attempted to establish contact with the pilot until the aircraft crashed," it said in a statement.