Top Democratic lawmaker Nancy Pelosi blasted the “apparent negligence” of the US aviation agency after a misunderstanding over a parachute stunt prompted police to evacuate the Capitol in Washington, causing what she called “unnecessary panic.”
The Federal Aviation Administration’s “apparent failure” to notify US Capitol Police of the planned flyover at the nearby Nationals Stadium, part of a military celebration, was “outrageous and inexcusable,” Pelosi, the speaker of the House of Representatives, said in a statement shortly after the evacuation order was lifted.
“The unnecessary panic caused by this apparent negligence was particularly harmful” for those still facing trauma from the January 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol, she said, adding that Congress would review “what precisely went wrong today and who at the Federal Aviation Administration will be held accountable for this outrageous and frightening mistake.”
