Washington D.C. No-Fly Zone: Small Aircraft Lands on Capitol Lawn, Prompts Street Closures [Watch]
A small aircraft resembling a helicopter landed on the West Lawn of the U.S. Capitol Wednesday. The unauthorized landing of the aircraft prompted nearby street closures and an arrest of the pilot, Fox News reports.
Capitol Police spokeswoman confirmed to Fox News that one person, the pilot, believed to be Dough Hughes, has been detained. The spokeswoman also confirmed that nearby streets were currently closed. A bomb squad is looking at the aircraft.
The area surrounding the Capitol is considered a no-fly zone.
Capitol Police approached the small aircraft shortly after it landed. The pilot was then taken into custody. The Tampa Bay Times reports that Hughes wanted to deliver papers through gyroscope.
The Capitol was put on a lockdown at 1:30 p.m. local time when the aircraft landed. No one was hurt and the liftdown was lifted, USAToday reports.
The aircraft was identified as a gyroscope, which looks like a helicopter. Gyroscopes rely on an engine-powered propeller to provide thrust.
According to Fox News' Shepard Smith, the pilot was composed and calm and surrendered immediately.
The Tampa Bay Times said that Hughes had contacted a reporter at the newspaper in case he was shot down or killed by police when trying to land the aircraft. He told the newspaper that he wanted to land the aircraft on the Capitol lawn because he wants campaign reform to get more attention.
"There's no question that we need government, but we don't have to accept that it's a corrupt government that sells out to the highest bidder," he told the newspaper. "We can have a government that works for the people, that answers to the people, that can only take money from the people in small amounts."
* This is a contributed article and this content does not necessarily represent the views of latinpost.com