Many mysteries surrounding the F-16 fighter jet chasing a plane in the US

USA Today reported on June 5 that F-16 fighter jets flew at supersonic speeds to intercept the Cessna Citation before it crashed in a forest in Virginia.

According to the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the Cessna Citation crashed into mountainous terrain near rural Montebello in southwestern Virginia at about 3:30 p.m. June 4 (local time). No survivors were found. The US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) will lead the investigation into the accident.

Nhiều bí ẩn quanh vụ chiến đấu cơ F-16 rượt đuổi máy bay ở Mỹ - Ảnh 1.

Search forces at the plane crash site on June 4. Photo: USA Today

The US Capitol Police said they tracked the Cessna Citation with federal partners after the pilot failed to respond despite flares.

Six F-16 jets from three different locations were scrambled to intercept the Cessna Citation at around 3:20 p.m. on June 4. Police said the Capitol Complex was "put on high alert for a short time until the aircraft left the area."

The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) confirmed that a fighter jet caused a sonic boom over the Washington area at approximately 3:10 p.m. on June 4. The sound came from an aircraft taking off from Joint Base Andrews.

The Cessna Citation departed from Elizabethton Municipal Airport in Elizabethton, Tennessee, bound for Long Island MacArthur Airport in New York, according to the FAA. It crashed near Montebello, about 130 miles southeast of Washington. Flight-tracking websites showed the Cessna Citation descending rapidly in a spiral pattern before crashing into the ground. Rescuers trekked for about four hours to reach the crash site.

The Cessna Citation was registered to Encore Motors, whose CEO, John Rumpel, told The New York Times that his daughter, his 2-year-old granddaughter, her nanny and the pilot were on board the ill-fated plane. They were returning to their home in East Hampton, Long Island, after visiting John’s home in North Carolina.

Mr. John - who is a pilot - thinks the plane may have lost pressurization.

President Joe Biden was golfing with his brother at Joint Base Andrews when the jet took off. Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said the incident did not affect the president's activities on June 4. A White House official said the sound of the explosion was "very small" at the golf course and that Biden had been briefed on the crash.

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