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Posted on 08/03/2025 8:34:15 AM PDT by logi_cal869
Over three days of sometimes contentious hearings this week, the National Transportation Safety Board interrogated Federal Aviation Administration and Army officials about a list of things that went wrong and contributed to a Black Hawk helicopter and a passenger jet colliding over Washington, D.C., killing 67 people.
The biggest revelations: The helicopter's altimeter gauge was broken, and controllers warned the FAA years earlier about the dangers that helicopters presented.
At one point NTSB Chairwoman Jennifer Homendy scolded the FAA for not addressing safety concerns.
“Are you kidding me? Sixty-seven people are dead! How do you explain that? Our bureaucratic process?” she said. “Fix it. Do better.”
- snip -
FAA and Army defend actions, shift blame
Both tried to deflect responsibility for the crash, but the testimony highlighted plenty of things that might have been done differently. The NTSB’s final report will be done next year, but there likely will not be one single cause identified for the crash.
“I think it was a week of reckoning for the FAA and the U.S. Army in this accident,” aviation safety consultant and former crash investigator Jeff Guzzetti said.
Army officials said the greater concern is that the FAA approved routes around Ronald Reagan International Airport with separation distances as small as 75 feet (23 meters) between helicopters and planes when planes are landing on a certain runway at Reagan.
(Excerpt) Read more at msn.com ...
Main takeaway: FAA needs to be flushed. That need has existed for a number of decades. Maybe under DJT it will now happen (but my other hand remains full /s).
Politically connected lesbian pilot barely qualified, getting current again after a couple of years at the White House as a escort for guests. More interested in grinning cockpit selfies and pride parades.
There wasn’t anything wrong with the altimeter.
I’ll admit I’m not anywhere near an expert on aviation, but I’ve got a simple question: How could the FAA or Army determine - after the fact, from the wreckage - that the altimeter was broken? Unless it showed up on a pre-flight checklist, how could they tell? Does that kind of thing register on the black box? If not, then this sounds like a manufactured reason for the accident, hiding something else.
DEI
Didn’t Earn It
“The helicopter’s altimeter gauge was broken”
How is ANY aircraft allowed to takeoff when it can’t accurately tell altitude?
You’d think that would be
You’d think it would be grounded until repaired.
And if it was identified as malfunctioning, how are they allowed to fly the craft, especially around a busy airport?
Re: Altimeter
Note my comment about the pilots’ low altitude awareness (rather, lack thereof).
I’m likewise suspicious of such a huge discrepancy. Regardless, I assign primary fault upon FAA, secondary to the US Army for lousy training (and/or die).
The pilots? Well, history will posthumously judge them harshly. Correction: “Should” judge them harshly. Righteously.
But the die players in US Army should neither escape scrutiny.
Some psycho MK Ultra trained lesbo mutant pilot was only doing what she was programmed to do. Convince me that Im wrong.
Altimeter Gauge, 3 1/8” 0-10,000 ft, millibar, Non-TSO
$249.95
Broken altimeter may have been a known issue, but if so, to me it’s unconscionable that that aircraft was allowed to takeoff.
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Last thing you check. DG -Compass set, and Altimeter set to the marked sign at the run-up area. If your altimeter setting to the local pressure shows something different than the posted elevation, you don’t take off.
In contrast to the B2/Guam crash & instruments, the computer in question here is the one between the ears.
If I was flying a low altitude mission - ESPECIALLY in an urban environment - I’d certainly be aware of my instrument accuracy, particularly under night flying conditions (i.e., NVGs, which pose all sorts of problems themselves), to state nothing of the hazards presented by the very obvious flight plan under the commercial landing pattern.
What I have yet to read is US Army pilot policy on said altimeter use, which in the hearing appears to have been glossed over by focus upon ‘older systems’.
The hazards presented to the pilots by those in charge of their particular mission belies the hazard to the public posed by decisions by responsible officials.
They should never have been permitted to perform these night flying ‘stunts’ without a commercial air traffic ‘hold’ for their transit. Period. IMHO
A very good question. Also, aren’t there duplicate instrument gauges in planes and helicopters, which would include altimeters for this exact reason, in case one malfunctions?,
I suppose I’m simple; but, I think he root cause is military training flights across active flight lanes at very busy airports. This Nation is plenty large enough to fly helicopters elsewhere.
These flights were about D.C. VIPs, you would think they would be well maintained.
Of course, the article doesn't mention which altimeter was inoperative.
My guess is that the radar altimeter was inop.
When flying low altitude, at night, using NVGs, the radar altimeter would be primary for determining altitude.
The pressure altimeter has a tolerance of +/- 75 feet.
IMHO, here's a key:
Army officials said the greater concern is that the FAA approved routes around Ronald Reagan International Airport with separation distances as small as 75 feet (23 meters) between helicopters and planes when planes are landing on a certain runway at Reagan.
I would agree.
However, if the radar altimeter was inop, night/NVG flight should have been cancelled.
I believe the Instructor Pilot / Flight Examiner was certainly a contributing factor.
DEI=DIE
“If your altimeter setting to the local pressure shows something different than the posted elevation, you don’t take off.”
The Quality team should’ve caught that on a checklist unless they were circumvented.
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