NV611G dropped more than 30K feet per minute before crashing in Virginia. Here's its flight path
A private plane crashed into mountainous terrain near Montebello in southwest Virginia Sunday after it flew into restricted airspace over the nation’s capital.
The incident prompted F-16 fighter jets to scramble at supersonic speed to intercept the plane, which did not respond to repeated attempts to get the pilot’s attention.
The plane, identified as a Cessna 560 Citation V, was registered to a Florida business owner named John Rumpel. Rumpel told the New York Times and The Washington Post that his “entire family” were on the plane, including his daughter, 2-year-old granddaughter, her nanny and the pilot.
What we know: 'My family is gone.' Plane owned by Florida business crashes after flying over D.C.
Virginia plane crash: F-16 fighters chased unresponsive plane near DC area before it crashed in Virginia; no survivors found, authorities say
The Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board are investigating the crash to uncover what lead to the accident.
Here’s a look at the plane’s flight as it began making its way from Melbourne Orlando International Airport in Florida to New York.
NV611G flight takes off from MLB to 0A9
According to flight data from FlightAware.com, the plane, registered as N611VG, took off from Melbourne Orlando International Airport at 10:59 a.m. EDT and landed at the Elizabethton Municipal Airport (0A9) at 12:31 p.m. EDT.
The 615-mile flight, which was relatively uneventful, reached a maximum altitude of 39,000 feet and traveled around 471 miles per hour before it reached its destination in Tennessee.
Where is Elizabethton, Tennessee?
Elizabethton is a small city located in Carter County, Tennessee. It’s notable as being the historical site of the first independent American government located west of both the Eastern Continental Divide and the original Thirteen Colonies, according to the city’s website.
The fairly remote city, whose population is just a hair above 14,000, is located in the northeastern tip of Tennessee.
The Elizabethton Municipal Airport is a city-owned, public-use airport located about 2.5 miles east of the city’s business district. It provides fuel, car storage and transportation services. It also has a 44,000-square-foot semi-private hangar and 26 nested private T-hangars.
It averages about 84 aircraft operations per day, 82% of which are local and 18% are transient.
NV611G flight leaves 0A9 and heads to ISP
The plane’s last flight would take it from Elizabethton to Long Island MacArthur (ISP) in New York. There was about a 42-minute delay between when the plane landed in Tennessee and when it took off to New York.
Flight data shows that the aircraft took off at 1:13 p.m. EDT and flew at a similar altitude and speed for the 1,381-mile flight.
Data shows that the plane suffered a rapid spiraling descent, dropping at a rate of more than 30,000 feet per minute before crashing in the St. Mary’s Wilderness. Virginia State Police said officers were notified of the crash shortly before 4 p.m. and that it took rescuers on foot about four hours to reach the crash site.
The plane crashed near Montebello, about 135 miles southeast of Washington.
Why the F-16s were scrambled
U.S. Capitol Police officials said they were monitoring the unresponsive pilot along with federal partners as the plane flew nearby on Sunday afternoon. The U.S. Capitol Complex was "briefly placed on an elevated alert until the airplane left the area," police said. Six jets from three locations were launched, and F-16 fighters from the D.C. National Guard intercepted the Cessna 560 Citation V at about 3:20 p.m. The pilot never responded to attempts to establish communication, North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) said.
This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Virginia plane crash: Tracking NV611G's flight path before crash
