Washington:  US fighter aircraft set off a sonic boom that left residents of Washington DC rattled on Sunday as it chased an unresponsive Cessna jet that had flown over the region.

The Cessna jet later crashed in Virginia.

No survivors were found.

The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) deployed F-16 fighter jets to respond to the unresponsive Cessna 560 Citation V aircraft over Washington, D.C., and Virginia, NORAD said in a statement. The scramble was conducted by the 113th Fighter Wing of the D.C. National Guard, a U.S. official told CBS News.

"The NORAD aircraft were authorized to travel at supersonic speeds and a sonic boom may have been heard by residents of the region," NORAD said, adding that flares, which may have been visible to the public, were also used in an attempt to get the pilot's attention.

Officials said the U.S. Capitol Complex was briefly placed on an elevated alert until the airplane left the area.

The U.S. Capitol Police tweeted on the incident: "This afternoon, our officials were working closely with our federal partners to monitor an unresponsive pilot who was flying an airplane near the National Capital Region. The U.S. Capitol Complex was briefly placed on an elevated alert until the airplane left the area.

The Federal Aviation Administration confirmed the crash and tweeted: " A Cessna Citation crashed into mountainous terrain near Montebello, VA around 3:30 PM ET on June 4. The aircraft took off from Elizabethton Municipal Airport in Elizabethton, TN and was bound for @LIMacArthurin New York. The FAA and
@NTSBwill investigate."

Several videos have gone viral where residents recorded the sound of the sonic boom and posted on social media.