Latest News

NTSB questions the failure of controllers to alert jets before the January crash in Washington DC

On Thursday, the National Transportation Safety Board questioned why an air traffic controller failed to warn of a possible collision moments before the crash between an Army helicopter with an American Airlines regional plane that killed 67. The National Transportation Safety Board held a second hearing day on Thursday to examine issues at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport prior to the collision that occurred over the Potomac River on January 29, 2018. The accident was the worst U.S. aviation disaster in over 20 years.

NTSB and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) officials stated that the controller should have issued a traffic warning to the passenger plane before the crash, but only gave it to the Army Black Hawk helicopter.

Michael Graham, a member of the NTSB Board, said that the controller "should have warned the plane (American Airlines) about the traffic".

Nick Fuller, a FAA official, said that the controller should've informed the American Airlines crew of the helicopter in the vicinity.

In an interview with NTSB investigators published on Wednesday, the controller said that when asked why he didn't issue the alert to jet, he replied "I honestly did not think it would have made any difference."

The NTSB cited an employee's memo from 2023, in which he questioned whether more flights should be added at the already overcrowded Reagan National Airport. FAA officials questioned if the arrival flight rate during certain 30-minute intervals was too high.

You're telling that they still fly more operations today than you predicted in 2023? Todd Inman, a member of the NTSB Board, asked FAA Manager Bryan Lehman if he agreed.

In April, the FAA announced that it was reviewing Reagan National’s arrival rate. This is concentrated disproportionately in the last 30 minutes each hour.

Investigators from the NTSB also questioned the FAA about why they failed to test the alcohol levels of controllers at the time the accident occurred.

On the first day, Wednesday, of the hearings, Jennifer Homendy, the NTSB chairperson criticized the FAA's failure to act.

Homendy stated that "every sign was there" that there was a risk to safety, and the tower told you. "You moved people instead of accepting responsibility for the fact that everyone in FAA at the tower said there was a safety risk... Fix it. "Do better"

The main runway of Reagan Airport is the busiest in the United States.

The NTSB revealed that in 2022, members of the FAA's air traffic working group had recommended moving helicopter traffic from Reagan National Airport to other airborne "hotspots" but the idea was rejected as it was "too politically charged."

(source: Reuters)