The Secret Service at the White House went on alert briefly Monday morning after an aircraft crossed into restricted airspace in what appeared to be an accidental violation. The aircraft -- listed in federal aviation records as a four-seat, single-engine, propeller-driven Mooney M20E -- was allowed to land under fighter escort at its original destination of Siler City, North Carolina, a government official said. The pilot was met by law enforcement upon landing.
The official said the aircraft, which began its flight in Pennsylvania, was tracked by radar the entire time to make sure it posed no threat.
Although the initial conclusion is that the airspace violation was an accident, the pilot will be interviewed as part of the investigation, the Secret Service said. After receiving word of an unauthorized aircraft in the restricted District of Columbia airspace, armed Secret Service officers began patrolling the White House grounds, some with rifles and other firearms drawn.
Neither President Bush nor first lady Laura Bush were at the White House at the time, but Vice President Dick Cheney was.
At no point did the Secret Service activate an internal White House alert system, which is used to inform the staff of possible security breaches or attacks.
