U.S. Capitol Evacuated After Airliner Loses Radio Contact Near Washington
The U.S. Capitol and the Senate and House office buildings were ordered evacuated today when air- traffic controllers briefly lost contact with a commercial flight heading into restricted airspace near Washington.
Piedmont Airlines Flight 4352 from Hilton Head, South Carolina, lost contact as it approached Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, prompting the North American Aerospace Defense Command to scramble fighter jets from Andrews Air Force Base, said Diane Spitaliere, a spokeswoman for the Federal Aviation Administration. The airport is less than five miles southwest of the Capitol building.
Radio contact with the plane was restored and the flight landed at the airport. Piedmont is a subsidiary of Tempe, Arizona-based US Airways Group Inc. Tina Swail, a spokeswoman for US Airways, said the plane briefly lost contact and that an investigation was under way. The flight landed at 2:07 p.m., according to the airline’s website.
U.S. Capitol Police issued an order to evacuate the buildings about 1:30 p.m. today, said Sergeant Kimberly Schneider, a spokeswoman for the police. Shortly after 2 p.m., the “threat had dissipated” and police were preparing to let people back in the evacuated buildings, Schneider said in a phone interview.
Washington is in the middle of a 30-mile “Air Defense Identification Zone” that was established after the 2001 terrorist attacks. On June 9, 2004, the Capitol was evacuated when a plane carrying Kentucky Governor Ernie Fletcher to Washington was misidentified.
To contact the reporters on this story: Jim Snyder in Washington at jsnyder24@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Larry Liebert at lliebert@bloomberg.net
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