On Sunday, June 4, many Greenbelt residents heard an unexpected, loud boom through the area that rattled some windows. This caused confusion and a flurry of emergency calls. Some suspected thunder ‒ although the skies were clear ‒ and many others feared it was an explosion.
At 5:22 p.m. the Greenbelt City Police Department shared on social media that the “loud boom that was heard across the DMV area was caused by an authorized DOD flight.”
A small private plane had crossed into a Special Flight Rules Area above Maryland shortly before 1:30 p.m. Pilots within the Special Flight Rules Area are required to maintain radio contact, among other things (such as providing a flight plan and transmitting a code). The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced that at 1:28 p.m. the pilot failed to respond to air traffic control instructions. The FAA reported the situation to the Domestic Events Network, which includes the military, national security, homeland security and other law enforcement agencies shortly after 1:30 p.m.
The small plane continued out of the Special Flight Rules Area toward Long Island where it then turned and headed back toward Washington. This time the plane crossed into a restricted zone that includes the White House and National Mall, violating a No-Fly Zone that was created after September 11, 2001.
At 2:35 p.m. two F-16 fighter jets were deployed from Joint Base Andrews and four were launched from bases in neighboring states to intercept the plane. The White House National Security Council Spokesperson John Kirby said at a press conference that the two jets from Andrews were the first to reach the plane. Flying faster than the speed of sound they had created the sonic boom that was heard in Greenbelt.
Though the private plane crossed restricted airspace, it was not considered an immediate threat to the capital because of its 31,000-foot altitude.
Investigation is ongoing but it is believed the small plane’s passengers, including the pilot, had lost consciousness due to lack of pressure and that the plane was travelling on autopilot. Tragically, it crashed in Virginia, likely because it had depleted its supply of fuel. There were no survivors from the plane, which had been carrying four people.