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DC plane crash live updates: Helicopter ‘was flying too high, by a lot,’ Trump insists (LIVE UPDATES)
https://nypost.com ^ | 1/31/2025 | By Victor Nava

Posted on 01/31/2025 7:55:18 AM PST by bitt

Bodies of 41 people killed when an American Airlines plane and an Army helicopter collided in the air over Washington, DC, Wednesday night have been recovered from the wreckage, officials said Friday.

The Black Hawk chopper hit the airplane, coming from Wichita, Kansas, as it approached Runaway 33 at Reagan National airport around 9 p.m., according to the Federal Aviation Administration.

...SNIP:

59 minutes ago

Supervisor let air traffic controller leave shift early before crash: report By Patrick Reilly

A supervisor at the Reagan National Airport tower reportedly let an air traffic controller leave early from his shift shortly before Wednesday night’s deadly collision over the Potomac River.

As a result, a single controller was handling the air traffic of both airplanes and helicopters flying in the area, a source familiar with the investigation told NBC News.

One controller is typically in charge of helicopters while another watches over airplanes. The FAA said Thursday that one air traffic controller was doing the jobs of two people at the time of the devastating crash.

According to radio transmissions from Wednesday night, the lone controller warned the US Army Black Hawk that it was getting too close to the American Airlines passenger flight, which the experienced helicopter pilot acknowledged.

Experts believe the helicopter pilot may have maneuvered to avoid the wrong plane — a jet of the same model that was taking off farther away — and never saw the American Airlines flight until it was too late.

The National Transportation Safety Board is also investigating whether the chopper was flying too high.

(Excerpt) Read more at nypost.com ...


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Extended News; Government; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: dcplanecrash; kamikaze; kamikazepilot; pilot; reagannational; transgender; transgenders
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1 posted on 01/31/2025 7:55:18 AM PST by bitt
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To: null and void; aragorn; EnigmaticAnomaly; kalee; Kale; AZ .44 MAG; Baynative; bgill; bitt; ...

P


2 posted on 01/31/2025 7:55:35 AM PST by bitt (<img src=' 'width=40%>)
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To: bitt

Trump ‘insists’?

It either did or it did not.

It did, so, it’s a ‘fact’..................


3 posted on 01/31/2025 7:56:41 AM PST by Red Badger (Homeless veterans camp in the streets while illegals are put up in 5 Star hotels....................)
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To: bitt

If you look at the flight data shown by Juan Brown in this video it shows the CRJ descending while the Black Hawk was ascending above the 200 foot ceiling limit set for helos.

Potomac Mid Air UPDATE 1/30/25
by blancolirio
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_3gD_lnBNu0


4 posted on 01/31/2025 7:58:05 AM PST by Tom Tetroxide (Psalm 146:3 "Do not trust in princes, in the Son of Man, who has no salvation.")
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To: bitt

I see the GOP_E scum are up to their usual tricks at the NY Post.


5 posted on 01/31/2025 7:59:30 AM PST by MNJohnnie (Don't blame me, my congressman is MTG!)
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To: Red Badger

Maybe it’s an alternate fact.


6 posted on 01/31/2025 8:01:44 AM PST by BenLurkin (The above is not a statement of fact. It is either opinion, or satire, or both.)
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To: bitt

https://www.smobserved.com/story/2025/01/30/news/a-transgender-pilot-named-jo-ellis-flew-blackhawk-helicopter-into-the-american-airlines-jet-at-reagan-national/8719.html


7 posted on 01/31/2025 8:02:28 AM PST by yldstrk
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To: bitt

Folks,

The one thing we do know is that this will not go away as other situations do. Trump is keeping it in the public view and that is the most important issue. LIke it or not.

This is shining the light on a lot of individuals and a lot of situations. There is a lot of speculation and umbrage on positions, but we are all thinking and learning.

Trump is a problem solver, there will be fixes.


8 posted on 01/31/2025 8:06:59 AM PST by PeterPrinciple (Thinking Caps are no longer being issued, but there must be a warehouse full of them somewhere)
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To: yldstrk

The unidentified person is a captain. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2025_Potomac_River_mid-air_collision#Passengers_and_crew


9 posted on 01/31/2025 8:09:34 AM PST by BenLurkin (The above is not a statement of fact. It is either opinion, or satire, or both.)
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To: bitt

What happened to the talk of using runway 1 instead of 33? Pretty sure we heard that the night of the crash. We even heard that the plane had adjusted for the change to runway 1. Contributing factor? Yes, no? Anyone? Bueller?


10 posted on 01/31/2025 8:10:15 AM PST by rktman (Destroy America from within ? Check! WTH? Enlisted USN 1967 to end up with this💩? 🚫💉! 🇮🇱👍!)
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To: yldstrk

Why are you continuing to try to advance this FALSEHOOD. Maybe the helicopter pilot was a transgender man or a transgender woman. I don’t know but I’m sure we’ll find out. But the pilot was not the person your linked clickbait article discusses. Just sayin’.


11 posted on 01/31/2025 8:13:17 AM PST by House Atreides (I’m now ULTRA-MAGA-PRO-MAX)
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To: PeterPrinciple

Forcing people into responsibility is the key here. For far to long no one was responsible for anything. Transparency and accountability needs to be front and center


12 posted on 01/31/2025 8:14:46 AM PST by ronnie raygun
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To: House Atreides

All the names in the links in this thread are different from those released yesterday.


13 posted on 01/31/2025 8:14:50 AM PST by Jamestown1630 ("A Republic, if you can keep it.")
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To: yldstrk

Ellis has posted on facebook that this is false, and he was NOT flying the Blackhawk


14 posted on 01/31/2025 8:15:01 AM PST by SauronOfMordor (Either you will rule. Or you will be ruled. There is no other choice.)
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To: yldstrk

The pilot talking on the recording is obviously male. He is told twice to watch out for the plane. He says twice he sees it and requests permission for “visual separation”. That means he is saying he sees and has it handled. He is given that permission. A retired local pilot put up a video with all the radio transmissions and says he thinks the pilot was looking at the plane in front of the subject plane, multiple planes were lined up coming to land in a line. The pilot sounded completely calm on both his transmissions.


15 posted on 01/31/2025 8:15:37 AM PST by SaxxonWoods (Black guy upon receiving a MAGA hat: "MURICA!")
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To: bitt
I really have trouble with the idea that the chopper pilot didn't see the aircraft it collided with. They were heading right at each other in the period leading up to each making their final turn. Maybe not perfectly aligned, but the lights of the descending aircraft would have been in plain view in front of the chopper. Then the aircraft banked left to line up with the runway, and the chopper took a right turn at about the same time resulting in an intersecting path.

As best I can gauge it, I believe the aircraft would have been within the peripheral vision of the chopper pilot(s) even at this stage, if they didn't have NVG on. And Face the Nation interviewed a veteran chopper pilot experienced with this exact route who said NVG would be worse than useless in such an urban environment, so I'm dubious about the notion they would have been wearing them.

Just my 2 satoshis...

16 posted on 01/31/2025 8:16:02 AM PST by EnderWiggin1970
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To: bitt

Was it a tranny? That’s what I want to know


17 posted on 01/31/2025 8:16:08 AM PST by MNDude
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To: bitt

In an airspace that restricted, I’m a little surprised there wouldn’t be an alarm if the chopper strayed outside its required flight path.


18 posted on 01/31/2025 8:18:22 AM PST by Carry_Okie (The tree of liberty needs a rope.)
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To: SauronOfMordor

Well, someone posted on Ellis Facebook page.


19 posted on 01/31/2025 8:20:26 AM PST by KobraKai
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To: SauronOfMordor

I saw that but the article was posted and sounded so certain. Did you read it? The article says that Ellis’ facebook account was updated with reference to the crash.....


20 posted on 01/31/2025 8:25:04 AM PST by yldstrk
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