WH: Secret Service may learn ‘useful lessons’ from gyrocopter landing

The Secret Service and other law enforcement agencies may gain some “useful lessons” from the landing of a gyrocopter near the Capitol, White House press secretary Josh Earnest said Thursday.

Earnest suggested the bizarre incident on Wednesday, in which the tiny aircraft apparently evaded radar detection in Washington’s protected airspace, could prompt the Secret Service to review its policies.

{mosads}“The Secret Service takes seriously the responsibility they have to protect the White House,” Earnest said. “They obviously are dealing with a very dynamic challenging security environment.”

Earnest joked President Obama may have had the same reaction as many others in Washington when he learned that the vehicle had touched down next to the Capitol building.

“It might have been, what’s a gyrocopter?” Earnest said.

A military aide first informed Obama of the incident during a trip to Charlotte, N.C., on Wednesday. Earnest was not on the trip and said he did not witness the president’s reaction.

The aircraft’s pilot was identified as Doug Hughes, a 61-year-old mail carrier from Ruskin, Fla., who was seeking to deliver letters to members of Congress calling for campaign finance reform.