Planes often enter America's protected airspace

WASHINGTON - Despite military patrols and tighter security, pilots have intruded into America&#39;s protected airspace at least 567 times since Sept. 11, highlighting the continued challenges of thwarting a terrorist airstrike. <br> <br> In each case, a pilot wrongly flew into one of the country&#39;s six prohibited flight zones, where no planes are allowed, or into one of many restricted zones where air traffic is limited because of sensitive military or nuclear operations or special events. <br> <br> The post-Sept. 11 incidents include four commercial jetliners and one medical helicopter that flew into the forbidden airspace protecting the White House, Capitol and vice presidential mansion in the nation&#39;s capital, officials said. The most recent incursion occurred this week.<br> <br> ``Practically speaking, by the time a violation is discovered, it is too late to do anything to prevent a crash into the White House,&#39;&#39; former FAA security chief Billie H. Vincent said. <br> <br> FAA Deputy Administrator Monte R. Belger said Thursday the agency recognizes there&#39;s little time to react once planes penetrate the safety zone and so the government has imposed numerous other precautions to ensure planes with ill intent don&#39;t get close. <br> <br> ``The restricted area is kind of the last line of defense,&#39;&#39; Belger said. ``The additional on-the-ground security procedures and in-flight protocols put in place give us a much higher level of confidence.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Borders have been tightened; pilots, flight crews and passengers are screened to weed out possible terrorists, and planes approaching Washington or other prohibited zones must complete authentication procedures, including providing passwords. <br> <br> FAA enforcement records obtained by The Associated Press show most pilots who have violated protected airspace over the past decade usually walk away with nothing more than a warning letter. <br> <br> Of the 111 pilots on 94 flights that flew into Washington&#39;s no-fly zone since 1992, just one was fined, for $1,000, and nine had their licenses suspended for between seven to 120 days, the records show. At least 90 were settled with administrative action - nearly all of them warning letters, the analysis showed. <br> <br> Just a month before the September hijackings, a Mesa Airlines flight strayed into prohibited airspace over Washington. By November, the matter was closed with a warning letter to the pilot - common for most cases. <br> <br> Between Sept. 11 and March 5, the FAA recorded 567 airspace violations across the country, ranging from prohibited airspace to special use zones where only certain planes may fly. <br> <br> Of that number, 65 involved incursions into major prohibited or restricted sites. Nineteen of those cases already have been resolved with no punishment or administrative letters, officials said. <br> <br> Former Transportation Department Inspector General Mary Schiavo, who highlighted airline safety problems in the 1990s and now works as a lawyer representing airline accident victims, said the small number of severe punishments amounts to laissez-faire enforcement. <br> <br> ``It is fairly typical. The FAA really doesn&#39;t like to do enforcement actions, particularly any carrier infringement,&#39;&#39; said Schiavo, a frequent FAA critic. <br> <br> FAA officials said they had no plans to stiffen the penalties, unless the number of incursions keeps growing. They said in most cases pilots mistakenly intruded the airspace or were blown into it by high winds. <br> <br> ``They generally aren&#39;t deliberate. They generally don&#39;t reflect poor skills or poor training,&#39;&#39; Belger said. ``If we do see a situation that is egregious or reflects a lack of training ... we take appropriate action.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Planes that violate Washington&#39;s prohibited zone are quickly warned by air traffic controllers to correct course, and the Secret Service is alerted. Nearly all pilots comply immediately, officials said. <br> <br> Military planes that patrol the capital skies are permitted to force such planes to land or, as a last resort, shoot them down if pilots don&#39;t respond. <br> <br> None of the five planes that flew into the capital&#39;s protected space since Sept. 11 have required such action, officials said. <br> <br> Washington&#39;s Reagan National airport was closed for more than a month after the attacks, and has been gradually reopened to traffic since despite reservations by the Secret Service. <br> <br> One pilot died when he crashed his small plane into the White House in September 1994; no one else was harmed. In 1999, a pilot drifted so close to the White House that agents fired a warning flare. That pilot ended up with a warning letter, FAA records show. <br> <br> The five most recent airspace violations are still being investigated, including a Frontier Airlines 737 jet that flew over the White House and vice presidential residence on Monday before correcting its path. That pilot has been grounded with pay pending the outcome of the investigation. <br> <br> FAA records show violators of Washington&#39;s airspace over the past decade include about three dozen pilots for major commercial airlines, one Air Force pilot, a NASA pilot, a handful of private or foreign pilots and several air transport companies. <br> <br> One pilot caught in Washington&#39;s prohibited airspace blamed air traffic controllers, saying they are so busy they sometimes order flight maneuvers that send pilots into the prohibited zone. <br> <br> ``The D.C. controllers are absolutely horrible. Washington National is absolutely the worst place to fly into, period,&#39;&#39; said Happy Wells, a 30-year veteran pilot from Oklahoma who was cited in July 1997 for flying his charter plane through Washington&#39;s prohibited zone. <br> <br> Wells said his proposed penalty was rescinded after he filed a report with the FAA. <br> <br> Outside Washington, there are five other prohibited zones: President Bush&#39;s ranch in Crawford, Texas; the Bush family compound in Kennebunkport, Maine; the presidential retreat at Camp David in Thurmont, Md.; the Pantex nuclear assembly plant in Amarillo, Texas; and the area around George Washington&#39;s home at Mount Vernon, Va. <br> <br> Elsewhere, there are numerous permanent and temporary restricted zones across the country. They cover military and nuclear sites, special events like the Winter Olympics in Utah and the Super Bowl in New Orleans, or places like New York and Boston where threats have prompted temporary zones.