curious
Corder had been a soldier in the army, enlisting in 1974. He was stationed at Fort Knox, Kentucky and Fort Carson, Colorado, where he was trained as a mechanic. He was honorably discharged from military service in July 1975 at the rank of private first class. After his service ended, he worked as a truck driver from 1976 until he was fired from his job in early 1993.
On April 15, 1993, Corder was arrested for theft and was arrested again later that year on October 9 for drug dealing. He was sentenced to spend 90 days at a drug rehabilitation center and was released in February 1994. After he was released, he was living with his third wife Lydia Corder at Keyser's Motel in Aberdeen, Maryland. Lydia left Frank three weeks prior to the incident at the White House, and it is believed that this drove him into a deep depression.
Friends of Corder's claimed that he bore no ill will towards President Bill Clinton and likely only wanted attention. Clinton was not even in the living quarters at the time due to renovations, staying at Blair House instead.
Corder stole the Cessna on the night of September 11 and departed from Aldino Airport in Maryland, severely intoxicated. The plane was noticed by radar technicians at National Airport several minutes before he tried to steer it into the wall of the White House. At 1:49 a.m., he hit the South Lawn and died on impact.
The crash caused a re-evaluation in security procedures around the White House, as the pilot had entered restricted airspace. Though the White House was believed to be equipped with surface-to-air missiles, none were fired.