US agency recommends restrictions on helicopters after Washington mid-air collision

The Manila Times

US agency recommends restrictions on helicopters after Washington mid-air collision  The National Transportation Safety Board on Tuesday, March 11, made an urgent safety recommendation to prevent helicopters from flying near Washington Reagan National Airport when two lesser-used runways are operational, a move that followed a mid-air collision in January that killed 67 people.  The NTSB justified its recommendation because of "risk of mid-air collisions between helicopters," according to a letter to the Federal Aviation Administration first reported by Reuters. It also is recommending that the FAA create an alternate route that can be used by helicopters when the two secondary runways at Reagan National are in use.  In the aftermath of the Jan. 29 crash between an American Airlines passenger jet and a Black Hawk military helicopter over the Potomac River in Washington, D.C., the FAA temporarily barred most helicopters near the airport — located in Arlington, Virginia — until it could review the NTSB's initial findings.   REUTERS / NTSB  Subscribe to The Manila Times Channel - https://tmt.ph/YTSubscribe    Visit our website at https://www.manilatimes.net    Follow us:  Facebook - https://tmt.ph/facebook  Instagram - https://tmt.ph/instagram  Twitter - https://tmt.ph/twitter  DailyMotion - https://tmt.ph/dailymotion    Subscribe to our Digital Edition - https://tmt.ph/digital    Check out our Podcasts:  Spotify - https://tmt.ph/spotify  Apple Podcasts - https://tmt.ph/applepodcasts  Amazon Music - https://tmt.ph/amazonmusic  Deezer: https://tmt.ph/deezer  Tune In: https://tmt.ph/tunein   #TheManilaTimes #tmtnews #ntsb  #blackhawk  #washington

Transcript

00:00We remain concerned about the significant potential for a future midair collision at

00:06DCA, which is why we are recommending a permanent solution today.

00:13At the maximum altitude here of just 200 feet, a helicopter operating over the eastern shoreline

00:22of the Potomac River would have just 75 feet of vertical separation from an airplane approaching

00:30Runway 33 – 75 feet.

00:35That distance decreases if the helicopter is operated farther from the shoreline.

00:40And again, this helicopter, the Black Hawk, was operated farther to the west.

00:49We've determined that the existing separation distances between helicopter traffic operating

00:56on Route 4 and aircraft landing on Runway 33 are insufficient and pose an intolerable

01:05risk to aviation safety by increasing the chances of a midair collision at DCA.

01:12Let me repeat that.

01:13They pose an intolerable risk to aviation safety.

01:20We're therefore recommending today that the FAA permanently prohibit operations on

01:26Helicopter Route 4 between Haines Point and the Wilson Bridge when Runways 15 and 33 are

01:34being used for departures and arrivals at DCA.

01:39With respect to how angry it makes me, it does make me angry, but it also makes me feel

01:48incredibly devastated for families that are grieving because they lost loved ones.

01:55It shouldn't take a tragedy like this to occur.

01:59Unfortunately, one did, and so we are calling on action.

02:04But there clearly were indicators where safety trending could have occurred.

02:10Fortunately, we have a secretary in place that is taking safety very seriously, but

02:17it shouldn't take a tragedy to require immediate action.

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