5 Jun, 2023 01:21

F-16s chase after rouge business jet over Washington

The supersonic planes were dispatched to intercept a no-fly zone violator

The US Air Force F-16 fighter jets were scrambled on Sunday tointercept a rogue private aircraft that flew over Washington, DC and crashed into mountains in Virginia.

The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) said in a statement that the jets took off to intercept a small Cessna Citation V aircraft, which had violated the special no-fly zone set up after the 9/11 terrorist attacks over the government quarter, which includes the White House and US Capitol.

The warplanes wereauthorized to travel at supersonic speedsand produced a loud sonic boom that was heard by the city’s residents.

According to NORAD, the F-16s used flares to draw the attention of the rogue plane, but its pilot had remained “unresponsive.” The Cessna eventually crashed near the George Washington National Forest, the military said. The White House told reporters that President Joe Biden had been notified about the incident.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said that the Cessna took off from Elizabethton Municipal Airport in Elizabethton, Tennessee and was heading for Long Island MacArthur Airport in New York. It added that the private jet crashed into mountains in a sparsely populated area.

According to media reports, the Cessna was registered to Florida-basedcompany Encore Motors. Encore owner John Rumpel told the Washington Post over the phone that his “entire family” was on board, including his daughter, a grandchild and her nanny.

Several news organizations cited people familiar with the investigation as saying that four people were inside the Cessna. It is unclear if there are any survivors.

https://www.rt.com/news/577472-fighter-jets-washington-intercept/

5 Jun, 2023 00:10

White House makes Ukraine conflict prediction

Kiev will recapture important territory, President Biden’s top adviser has said

The US believes that Ukraine’s long-planned counteroffensive against the Russian troops will ultimately allow Kiev to recover some lost ground, the White House national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, said on Sunday.

Speaking to CNN’s Fareed Zakaria, Sullivan was confident that Ukraine would recapture “strategically significant territory.”

“Exactly how much, in what places, that will be up to developments on the ground as the Ukrainians get this counteroffensive underway,” the official said.

“But we believe that the Ukrainians will meet with success in this counteroffensive.” (They are sending in American soldiers! Or SeeEyeAye embedded, or mercenaries.)

Sullivan added that the outcome of the operation will have a “major impact” on future negotiations.

Hours after Sullivan’s remarks were aired, theRussian Defense Ministry said that the Ukrainian forces had failed to break through the defensive lines in Donbass, suffering heavy losses. The MOD described the operation as “a large-scale offensive.”

Ukrainian officials have been sending mixed signals in recent weeks regarding their preparations for the much-touted effort to push back the Russians.

President Vladimir Zelensky said on Saturday that the army was ready for the counteroffensive. His deputy chief of staff, Igor Zhovkva, however, said the same day that Kiev had still not accumulated enough weapons for a successful offensive campaign.

https://www.rt.com/news/577471-us-ukraine-success-battle/