Philadelphia, July 25: A fighter jet and two military helicopters escorted a small plane to a landing strip after it inadvertently violated the airspace over US President George W Bush's motorcade in Philadelphia, officials said. The pilot was taken into custody after the incident yesterday, then released several hours later. After air controllers tried unsuccessfully to contact the pilot, the helicopters and an F-16 escorted the plane to the Camden county airport in neighboring New Jersey state, said a spokeswoman for the federal aviation administration.

Karl Kleinberg, who owns and operates the airport, said about 20 police officers approached the pilot, guns drawn, and ordered him to lie on the tarmac. He was handcuffed, taken to the local police department, then released.

The pilot was in the air to monitor utility pipelines and inadvertently violated a 50-kilometre no-fly zone.

Bush appeared at a federal check-processing center in Philadelphia. The incident did not appear to affect the motorcade.
Bureau Report