Small plane strays into US Prez retreat

The United States scrambled a F-15 fighter jet and intercepted a two-seat civilian plane flying into restricted airspace over Camp David where President Barack Obama and family were holidaying.

The North American Aerospace Defence Command said one of its F-15 fighters was dispatched on Saturday afternoon when a civilian airplane was detected flying towards the presidential retreat at Camp David in Maryland.

The civilian aircraft, which was out of radio communication, was intercepted   approximately 10 kilometres from Camp David, NORAD said in a statement. Escorted by the fighter jet, the plane was shepherded to Hagerstown, MD, where it was forced to land.

The jet fighter "escorted the aircraft out of the area and it landed at Hagerstown, Maryland, without incident," the statement said.

NORAD spokeswoman Angela Young said that the civilian plane's occupants were flying between two Maryland towns and were released without charge, AFP reported.