What is a sonic boom, and how does it happen?
CBSN
Residents of Washington, D.C., and parts of Virginia were startled on Sunday afternoon by an explosive noise that reverberated overhead, which officials later confirmed was a sonic boom produced as United States military jets flew at high speeds across the area.
The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) said in a statement that it deployed the F-16 fighter jets after authorities detected an unresponsive Cessna 560 Citation V aircraft, a private plane, that had entered restricted airspace over a section of the capitol where some national landmarks are located. They were ordered to intercept the Cessna because its pilot did not respond to radio transmissions and was following "a strange flight path," a U.S. official told CBS News. The military scramble was conducted by the 113th Fighter Wing of the D.C. National Guard, the official said.
"The NORAD aircraft were authorized to travel at supersonic speeds and a sonic boom may have been heard by residents of the region," NORAD said in a statement. The bureau also said at the time that flares were used in an effort to gain the pilot's attention, and they may have been visible to the public as well.
