5/11 proves a dud but US left shaken

The plane’s approach sent at least two F-16 fighter jets into the air over the US Capital and hundreds of staff and tourists into the streets outside the Capitol building, White House and Supreme Court in an urgent evacuation.

President George W. Bush was not at the White House at the time, having gone on a bicycle ride at a wildlife preserve in the suburbs. Vice President Dick Cheney was in the West Wing and was quickly moved to a secure location, an administration official said.

The Cessna, which turned away from the Capitol after it approached then turned back, was escorted to Frederick, Maryland, and the pilot was taken into police custody, a US Homeland Security official said.

‘‘Get out, get out,’’ Capitol police shouted to lawmakers and staff as they moved through the building and offices, clearing the floors and galleries in both chambers.

US Senators debating highway legislation dropped their papers and ran from the Senate chamber. House of Representatives lawmakers were in the midst of a vote when the evacuation order came.

The incident prompted the US Government’s joint operations center to send an ‘‘alert’’ to White House staff. ‘‘Do not leave building. Proceed to interior halls and lower levels. Avoid windows,’’ the alert read.

Capitol police swiftly moved senators, aides, lobbyists and journalists toward Union Station, about two blocks away. Police used bullhorns to order onlookers near the Capitol to ‘‘stay away from the building’’.

The Secret Service later gave the ‘‘all clear’’ within minutes of the scare and allowed staff to return to their offices in the White House. Capitol police also issued an ‘‘all clear’’ bulletin for Congress.

A homeland security official said the Cessna was escorted by fighter jets and helicopters and ordered to land in Frederick, which is just outside the restricted airspace around Washington. State police took the pilot into custody.

The official was not sure if there were any other people on board the airplane or where it was traveling from. ‘‘Standard procedures were followed,’’ the official said.

Pilots are not allowed to fly into airspace set up by the Federal Aviation Administration after the September 11, 2001 hijacked airliner attacks.

‘Bush never in danger despite grenade’

: Georgian security officials discovered a hand-grenade close to US President George W. Bush as he addressed a rapturous crowd in Tbilisi on Tuesday, but the White House said on Wednesday his life was never in danger. Georgia’s security chief, speaking to journalists on Wednesday, did not confirm an earlier report from Washington that said the device had been thrown within 30 m of Bush. ‘‘A (Soviet-made) RPG-5 hand grenade was found at the square,’’ Gela Bezhuashvili, secretary of Georgia’s Security Council, said. It was discovered 50 m from where Bush stood, he said. There was no word on whether anyone had been detained in connection with the incident. —Reuters