US authorities said today that the four people on board a private jet flying near Washington, D.C. on Sunday, were killed and, after it did not respond to calls from the control tower, two F-16 fighter jets took off to intercept it, breaking the sound barrier. above the federal capital.

Rescuers who arrived at the crash site shortly before 8:00 p.m. (local time, 03:00 today Greek time) “did not find any survivors,” Washington police told AFP, ending the search. .

Two F-16 fighters took off after the control tower received no response from this private Cessna 560 Citation V jet flying over Washington and northern Virginia, the North American Aerospace Defense Command said in a statement ( NORAD)

The plane then crashed in a mountainous area of ​​the state of Virginia, about 270 kilometers from Washington, according to the US Civil Aviation Administration (FAA).

The chasers produced a loud sound-barrier crash that rattled windows for miles around, mainly in the federal capital, and prompted many questions from residents on social media.

The owner of the business, in whose name the plane was registered, John Ramble, told the Washington Post newspaper yesterday that his entire family was on board, his daughter as well as a grandchild and his nanny.

In response to messages of condolence posted on her Facebook page, his wife Barbara Ramble wrote: “My family is no longer in this world, my daughter and my granddaughter.”

The jet had taken off from Elizabethton, Tennessee, to Long Island, New York, according to the FAA.

Flight-tracking website Flightradar24, however, reported that the plane turned around after flying over Long Island and headed south, flying over Washington and Virginia.

The US Capitol and its buildings in Washington were “briefly put on high alert until the plane left the zone,” Capitol Police said.