[JYO] White House was evacuated & Wandering Pilot was talking to Leesburg FSS

White House Briefly Evacuated

By MICHAEL BUETTNER
.c The Associated Press 

RICHMOND, Va. (June 20) - A Cessna pilot who apparently got lost over the 
nation's capital prompted the evacuation of the White House after flying 
through restricted airspace and getting within a few miles of the executive 
mansion.

The pilot, who officials said changed course to avoid bad weather during a 
twilight trip from Massachusetts to Raleigh, N.C., was escorted by roaring 
F-16s all the way to the ground at Richmond International Airport.

The pilot and his one passenger were not immediately identified.

The White House was evacuated for 15 minutes after the small plane entered 
restricted airspace, but President Bush stayed, protected by unspecified 
security procedures, officials said.

The plane got as close as four miles from the executive mansion, said Secret 
Service agent Brian Marr. The evacuation was called off when the Cessna 182 
changed direction and the pilot contacted the tower at Reagan National 
Airport, Marr said.

Federal authorities questioned the pilot and passenger at the Richmond 
airport. Police said they found nothing of concern in the plane's cabin.

Troy Bell, spokesman for the Richmond airport authority, said it was his 
understanding the pilot's story checked out and that federal authorities had 
decided to let the plane take off and resume its journey.

Bell said his understanding was that the pilot got near the White House after 
he changed course to avoid weather problems. He said the pilot might be 
charged with an aviation infraction.

Bush had returned from a Republican fund-raiser just 20 minutes earlier when 
staff and reporters were ordered to leave the executive mansion shortly after 
8 p.m.

A man hurried through the White House press area saying, ''Get out, get out, 
everybody out. Secret Service says everyone has to leave the building.''

Some White House staffers stayed with the president.

The pilot started his flight at a small airport in Gardner, Mass., and did 
not make required contact as he approached Washington, officials said.

The plane approached from the northeast above the nation's capital at 10,500 
feet, well below the minimum 18,000 feet required for the restricted space, 
federal aviation officials said. The restriction applies to a 15-mile radius 
around Reagan National Airport.

''This just looks like a pilot that had no clue he was entering restrictive 
airspace,'' Marr said.

While the pilot was not in contact with controllers, he was in contact with a 
flight service station in Leesburg, Va., that supplies weather information.

The incident came just hours after staff at the Federal Reserve, including 
Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan, were evacuated when a suspicious package was 
found in a garbage bin. Police cordoned off several blocks, but the package 
proved harmless.

The evacuation of the White House was the first since Sept. 11, when the 
building was thought to be a target of one of the hijacked jetliners used in 
the terrorist attacks.

Four commercial airliners and a medical helicopter have crossed into 
prohibited airspace protecting the White House since Sept. 11, Federal 
Aviation Administration officials say. Pilots have flown through the 
restricted space at least 94 times over the past decade.

On Sept. 12, 1994, a man flying a stolen Cessna died when he crashed on the 
South Lawn of the White House.

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