Keeping a watchful eye on a White House with enough problems already, security agents fired a red warning flare from the executive mansion roof Friday at a Piper Navajo that strayed too close as President Clinton headed home in a helicopter.

The Secret Service said the Navajo -- initially identified as a "twin-engine Piper Cub" by CNN -- had been forced by high winds and weather conditions into the prohibited airspace around the White House and was not considered a security threat. The pilot was in touch with the tower at Reagan National Airport (DCA), where the plane had departed, and the flare was fired to help him get a sense of direction and the boundaries of the prohibited airspace, said Secret Service spokesman John Tomlinson.

The incident occurred about 10 minutes before Clinton's helicopter landed on the White House lawn. The plane came from the east after departing DCA and was on a westward course over the National Mall, a major no-no. Having probably heard reports that the Secret Service allegedly has shoulder-launched missile capabilities at the White House, the Navajo pilot prudently and expeditiously flew away after the flare was fired.