Foreign Media Raise Various Possibilities
Suspicion of 'Abnormal Flight' by Helicopter
The collision accident between a passenger plane and a helicopter in Washington DC, USA, has entered its second day, but questions are being raised regarding the circumstances of the incident. Foreign media have discussed various possibilities about who is responsible for the rare event of a mid-air collision between a civilian aircraft and a military helicopter.
On the 31st, Yonhap News cited the US daily The New York Times (NYT), quoting four anonymous sources who reported that the helicopter had deviated from its authorized route and altitude at the time of the accident.
On the 30th, recovery operations are underway for the passenger plane-helicopter collision accident on the Potomac River in Washington DC. Photo by AFP Yonhap News
There is suspicion that the US Army Black Hawk helicopter that collided with the passenger plane was engaged in 'abnormal flight.' According to the NYT, when the helicopter requested permission to enter commercial airspace, the Ronald Reagan Airport control tower authorized a flight path closely following the eastern embankment of the Potomac River at an altitude below 200 feet (about 60 m).
The helicopter pilot was aware of this route in advance and also visually confirmed the passenger plane. The control tower reportedly instructed the helicopter to maintain its route behind the passenger plane. However, the helicopter operated unexpectedly. It climbed above 300 feet and deviated about 0.5 miles (approximately 800 m) from the authorized route, resulting in the collision with the passenger plane.
There have been calls for a detailed investigation regarding this matter. CNN reported that the US Army aviation authorities plan to investigate whether the helicopter pilot was wearing night vision goggles at the time. Pilots can confuse the water surface and sky during dark nights, and night vision goggles are used to prevent such 'flight illusions.' However, the US Army does not mandate the use of night vision goggles during night flights. It has not yet been revealed whether the pilot of the accident helicopter was wearing night vision goggles during the flight. The pilot is known to be a veteran with over 1,000 hours of total flight experience.
Rescue teams searching in the Potomac River near Washington DC, USA, after a helicopter and a passenger plane collided and crashed. Photo by AFP Yonhap News
Some have pointed out the possibility of a shortage of air traffic control personnel responsible for 'aviation traffic safety.' The NYT reported, based on an internal preliminary report from the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), that at the time of the accident, air traffic control duties at Ronald Reagan Airport were concentrated on one person.
Normally, this airport has two controllers dividing duties from 10 a.m. to 9:30 p.m., with one managing helicopter traffic and the other fixed-wing aircraft. After 9:30 p.m., when air traffic decreases, one controller manages all operations.
The accident occurred around 8:53 p.m., a time when two controllers should have been on duty, but it appears that duties had been handed over early to one controller. The media reported that the control tower manager sometimes allows one controller to leave early before 9:30 p.m. at their discretion, depending on the day's air traffic situation.
The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported that on the 28th, a day before the accident, there was a near-miss incident at Ronald Reagan Airport involving a civilian aircraft and a military helicopter. A Republic Airlines passenger plane departing from Windsor Locks, Connecticut, spotted a helicopter just before landing, quickly turned its nose, circled for about 10 minutes, and then landed again. WSJ confirmed this through communication records, in which the pilot responded to the control tower's inquiry about the reason for the go-around by saying, "There is a helicopter passing below."
Earlier, on the 29th, a collision and crash occurred between an American Airlines subsidiary PSA Airlines passenger plane and a Black Hawk (Sikorsky H-60) helicopter near Washington DC. Regarding this, President Donald Trump said, "Sadly, there are no survivors," and expressed condolences to "all those who suddenly lost such precious souls. It was a dark and painful night in our nation's capital and history." President Trump announced the appointment of Christopher Loughro, who served 22 years at the FAA, as acting head of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the agency responsible for aviation safety.
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