Pilot Was Ill-Prepared, Froze in Flight, FAA Says

FAA records indicate that Sheaffer failed to take the most basic steps that are required of pilots before operating an aircraft. He did not check the weather report before he left Smoketown, nor did he check FAA's "Notices to Airmen," which serve as the agency's pre-departure required reading for pilots to alert them of airspace restrictions. Had Sheaffer checked the notices, he would have seen that there is a 2,000-square-mile area around Washington known as the Air Defense Identification Zone.

Sheaffer became lost soon after departure, records show. The documents show that he also failed to communicate with the FAA and provide necessary navigation information to ensure the safety of the flight.

The Cessna crossed through three layers of increasingly restricted airspace. The first, the Air Defense Identification Zone, is defined by the areas that are within a 30-mile radius of each of the Washington area's three major airports. The second, known as the Flight Restricted Zone, covers a 16-mile area around the Washington Monument.

Once intercepted by the Black Hawk and minutes away from flying over sensitive landmarks in the city, Sheaffer told investigators that he thought he had mistakenly flown over Camp David, another restricted airspace known as Prohibited Area P-40, FAA records show.

The FAA also said that Sheaffer was unaware of intercept procedures and did not know how to respond once he saw the Black Hawk, customs jet and two F-16s. The F-16s flew by several times, both of them dropping flares to get his attention.

The most dangerous breach occurred when Sheaffer crossed into Prohibited Area P-56, no-fly airspace covering the White House and the Naval Observatory. The Cessna passed over that area while being escorted away by the Black Hawk. Compounding the problem, federal authorities had difficulty establishing communication with the Cessna, a security log of the events shows.

The log shows that the Black Hawk was airborne by 11:55 a.m., as the plane kept heading into Washington. Five minutes later, the log says that "fighters are on the target" and that "flares are authorized."

At 12:03 p.m., the White House was put on its highest level of alert. At 12:04, the log shows the missiles were about to be used. No order to shoot down the plane was issued, although officials said it was the closest they have come to calling for the downing of a civilian aircraft.

The log shows that authorities initially planned to divert the plane to Leesburg. But even with the jets and helicopter roaring nearby, the Cessna was "not communicating" at 12:16, the log said. Finally, at 12:22, an entry says, "They are communicating, the fighters will force down at Frederick."

Staff writers Fredrick Kunkle and Del Quentin Wilber contributed to this report.