Posted on 01/30/2025 2:02:18 PM PST by Macho MAGA Man
Third person is crew chief. He’s been identified.
The Blackhawk has billeting for 4 personnel. 2 pilots, 2 crew chiefs.
The mission was described as annual training. Could’ve been in the use of NVGs?
Maybe the onboard crew chief needed to qualify/refresh on the use of NVGs?
Perhaps the other/missing crew chief was up to date on NVGs and didn’t need the training.
Just spit balling.
I agree, the question is why did the HAC allow it.
Just read on X that the US Army is REFUSING the name the 3rd pilot on the blackhawk..Im telling you I felt it from the moment this happened, this was intentional
Just read on X that the US Army is REFUSING the name the 3rd pilot on the blackhawk..Im telling you I felt it from the moment this happened, this was intentional
And they wonder why conspiracy theories flourish.
Keep comms. short and sweet...
This is my response to another poster that was surprised to learn that the helo had communicated with ATC on a military frequency. The poster asked for an opinion on how ATC talked to the helo pilot. Meaning, the comments by ATC did not help enough to mitigate the collision, and was therefore culpable to some degree. The poster asked what a proper dialog might be in the situation. I offered up the following script.
ATC to helo
PAT 2-5
Aircraft at 5 o’clock
Turn to 3 o’clock NOW
In hindsight (Aircraft at your 11 o’clock)
In hindsight (Turn to your 9 o’clock NOW)
Descend 200 feet NOW
Follow east shoreline
Have a good night
<><><>
Airfield North is 12 o’clock
Airfield East is 3 o’clock
Airfield South is 6 o’clock
Airfield West is 9 o’clock
From what I understand,there are many highly qualified female chopper pilots.
This sort of “news story” is pointless drivel.
The Helicopter was above the prescribed ceiling it should have been operating at, however, claiming that the pilots or copilots gender was why is just beyond nonsensical.
Why the heli was operating above the prescribed ceiling I am sure will be a large focus of the investigation, right now, we really don’t know why, all we know is it was.
Setting the Record Straight: Michael Smerconish Debunks False Rumor About Transgender Blackhawk Pilot
January 31st, 2025 | 18:03 | E1230
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Episode Summary
Earlier this week, Michael interviewed our former colleague, Jo Ellis. She was formerly the Digital Media Manager of Smerconish.com. She also is a transgender member of the military. That is why she came to speak with Michael on Wednesday January 29, to discuss her exclusive Smerconish.com piece “Living to Serve, Living as Myself” in response to President Trump ordering transgender troops can not serve in the military. Then, later the same day....the tragic disaster of a Blackhawk ?Helicopter colliding with a American Airlines jet happened in Washington, DC. Fast forward to today, and unbelievable rumors circulated online and quickly went viral, suggesting Jo Ellis was the pilot of the chopper that collided with the plane. This is not true - Jo is alive and well - listen here as Michael and TC present the facts and prove this story is completely false. Original air date 31 January 2025.
Episode Notes
Listen to Michael’s conversation from Tuesday, January 28th 2025 with Jo Ellis here in Episode #1226.
Read “Living to Serve, Living as Myself: A Transgender Service Member’s Perspective” by Jo Ellis at Smerconish.com.
Show Contributors
Michael Smerconish
TC Cannon
Jo Ellis
The [ FAA mandated ] helo flight route off the southeast end of the airport is the eastern shoreline of the Potomac River, up to 200 feet MSL.
I say again, the eastern shoreline of the Potomac River, is the [ FAA mandated ] helo flight route.
Once past the Wilson Bridge (south) the flight route ceiling restriction is increased to 300 feet MSL.
A helo COULD follow the western shoreline of the Potomac River, but is PROHIBITED.
A helo COULD follow the middle of the Potomac River, but is PROHIBITED.
The [ FAA mandated ] helo flight route is very specific for this area, due to the dynamic nature of the airport’s take off and landing zone at the south end of the airfield, which is in CLOSE proximity to another ACTIVE flight path.
<><><>
SKYVECTOR Aeronautical Charts WASH, DC
Click on the > > > DC heli < < < button, in the upper right corner of the page and it will bring up the helo route that skirts the Reagan Airport as I describe in my post above.
freepersup
https://skyvector.com/?ll=38.851440278,-77.037721389&chart=102&zoom=2
DC helo routes can be found at the hot link that I posted.
Click on the > > > DC Heli < < < button, in the upper right corner.
I know military aircraft (fixed wing) have these devices and it uses a female voice when giving warnings.
I don't know how well equipped that Black Hawk was, however I'll bet it didn't have TCAS but just a transponder to code out a signal given to it to identify the Hawk.
The Cessna I fly has all those goodies - bells, horns, and a 'Chattie Kathy' that blabs all the time when you go outside the parameters you have set.
if they have nothing to hide release the name, they already released the other two pilots..its been two days, the families have all been notified of who died on both planes
My post is off topic, but may answer some questions about the flight parameters in and around the Reagan Airport.
Two things.
The flight corridor ceiling is restricted to 200 feet MSL.
The flight corridor is named ROUTE 4, and hugs/follows the EASTERN shoreline of the Potomac River implicitly.
Helos are NOT to fly down the center of the river or fly along the western shoreline.
Only along the EASTERN shoreline, no higher than 200 feet MSL.
One of my jobs in a former life was Aviation Safety Officer. I saw the film clip and I believe it was intentional as well. Currently I am hung up on the 'How?' Outside of a suicide pact which obviously didn't include the Crew Chief, there are still too many questions. The Aircraft Commander seems to be a pro. There is no way it was accidental as if the crew couldn't see the jet. As a pilot there are two cardinal rules.#1Don't kill yourself and #2 which would apply here is Don't let anyone else kill you. Cockpit dynamics would say that the HAC lost control over the aircraft to the copilot somehow. The absence of the ID of the copilot indicates chicanery. Unfortunately an AMB takes awhile but this has high pressure behind it 3 weeks to a month probably.
Helos have a radalt, some have special comm paks but the rest are equipped for what a helo does best, support the ground guys.
Remember many years ago there was an incident on a plane where the co pilot took control of the plane and crashed it into a mountain, I dont believe the two pilots whose names were released had any part in this, they both leave behind wives and children so no way are they involved, but the 3rd pilot, there is NO reason to not release their name now, its been two days, all the families know who were on board both the helicopter and plane, so there is no reason to refuse to release it unless they know that this was deliberate. These are experienced military members, you can clearly see the helicopter go behind the plane and smack it, they were told twice to NOT go above 200 feet and they did, the question is why?
Some but not all. I’ve seen, been in, BH’s that are set up for silent running ... can’t barely hear the blades rotating at speed. And their main panel looks like a video game.
there is NO reason to not release their name
Of course there is, could be lack of NOK, could be something else. The AMB has been convened which is not public info until released. There may be other reasons as well. The public doesn't have the right to know everything. Under this President we will know when they have completed their work.
The helicopter did, but you can't say 'they'. I don't think it is 'they'.
An avionics nightmare in a line unit.
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