Light plane crashes after chase by jet fighters in Washington area By Reuters

By Phil Stewart and Three major foreign exchange dealers in the worldTed Hesson

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. authorities scrambled jet fighters to pursue a light aircraft that violated airspace in the Washington D.C. area and later crashed into mountainous terrain in southwest Virginia, U.S. officials said.

The jet fighters caused a sonic boom over the U.S. capital as they raced to catch up with the Cessna Citation, which can carry between seven to 12 passengers, officials said.

The Federal Aviation Administration said a Cessna aircraft crashed into mountainous terrain in southwest Virginia around the time the sonic boom was heard in the capital.

A U.S. official said the jet fighters did not cause the crash.

A source familiar with the matter said the Cessna was believed to be on autopilot and did not respond to authorities efforts to make contact with it.

The sonic boom caused consternation among many residents in the capital region who took to Twitter to report hearing a loud noise that shook the ground and walls. Several residents said they heard the noise as far away as northern Virginia and Maryland.

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