Joe Biden evacuated after unauthorised plane enters airspace near beach home

No threat to U.S. President or his family; precautionary measures were taken: White House

A small private airplane mistakenly entered restricted airspace near United States President Joe Biden's Delaware vacation home on Saturday, prompting the brief evacuation of the President and First Lady, the White House and the Secret Service said.

The White House said there was no threat to Mr. Biden or his family and that precautionary measures were taken. After the situation was assessed, Mr. Biden and his wife, Jill, returned to their Rehoboth Beach home.

The Secret Service said in a statement that the plane was immediately escorted from the restricted airspace after “mistakenly entering a secured area.” The agency said it would interview the pilot who, according to a preliminary investigation, was not on the proper radio channel and was not following published flight guidance.

As is standard practice for presidential trips outside Washington, the Federal Aviation Administration published flight restrictions earlier this week before Mr. Biden's beach town visit. The restrictions include a 10-mile (16 kilometres approximately) radius no-fly zone contained with a 30-mile (48 kilometres approximately) restricted zone.

A CBS News reporter said on Twitter that he saw Mr. Biden motorcading to a Rehoboth Beach fire station. The group of reporters that travels with the President was not part of the motorcade.

Federal regulations require pilots to check for flight restrictions along their route before taking off. Still, accidental airspace breaches, particularly around temporary restricted zones, are common.

U.S. military jets and Coast Guard helicopters are often used to intercept any planes that violate the flight restrictions around the President. Intercepted planes are diverted to a nearby airfield where aircrews are interviewed by law enforcement and face potential criminal or civil penalties.