Fighter jets chase aircraft that entered restricted airspace in D.C.

F-16 fighter jets chasing a light aircraft that violated airspace in Washington, D.C., caused a sonic boom heard across the area on Sunday afternoon.

The jet fighters were scrambled after the pilot of the Cessna Citation did not respond to U.S. military officials when they tried to establish contact, the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) said in a statement, adding, "NORAD attempted to establish contact with the pilot until the aircraft crashed" near the George Washington National Forest in Virginia.

The Cessna took off from Elizabethton Municipal Airport in Elizabethton, Tennessee, and was headed to Long Island MacArthur Airport in New York, the Federal Aviation Administration said. The flight-tracking website Flight Aware reported that the plane appeared to reach the New York area before it made almost a 180-degree turn.

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A person familiar with the matter told Reuters it's believed the aircraft was on autopilot, and U.S. officials said the jet fighters did not cause the plane to crash. Four people were on board the Cessna, CNN reported, and Virginia State Police are now searching for the crash site.