Commercial Flight Collides with Helicopter Over Potomac

[FLcracker]

Big screwup, no doubt!

Bottom line, how many people lost their lives? ☹️☹️☹️☹️

American Airlines passengers: 60
American Airlines crew: 4
Military helicopter crew: 3 that they have reported.?

 

[FLcracker]

I wonder, as I have heard of pilot bravado and over-confidence before… did the Helo pilot believe, he could get through that “intersection” before the commercial flight and he miscalculated?

Do military flight crews also defer to the pilot alone, or is their flying and awareness a team effort (?) i.e., would anyone within that crew speak up if they knew the pilot was “ racing” the airliner?

That kinda flying will get your wings clipped, and it did.

 

[fuelman1]

Sad for the families of the deceased. It makes me sick to see the online BS. I saw one where they blame the new Sec Def and Trump. As if they have control over that single helo. And the BS conspiracy crap like the one posted above. The scourge of the internet thrives on this stuff.

 

[Edog537]

I wonder, as I have heard of pilot bravado and over-confidence before… did the Helo pilot believe, he could get through that “intersection” before the commercial flight and he miscalculated?

That kinda flying will get your wings clipped.

No. They just lost awareness. The co-pilot and crew chief in that situation should be putting eyes on every aircraft ATC is calling out. The Helo is the aircraft clogging up the skies in this situation.

All those “stories” you hear about military pilots doing crazy **** are mostly stories. The “Mavericks” of the world would have been tragically lost at sea.

 

[Buck73]

Recover effort now, accepting no survivors.
27 bodies recovered with one being military.
67 total deaths.

 

[fuelman1]

I wonder, as I have heard of pilot bravado and over-confidence before… did the Helo pilot believe, he could get through that “intersection” before the commercial flight and he miscalculated?

That kinda flying will get your wings clipped, and it did.

That's my guess. He miscalculated the separation and speed of the incoming flight and thought he could get through the intersection. Give or take some very short distances this could have been a near miss and we never would have heard about it.

 

[FLcracker]

That's my guess. He miscalculated the separation and speed of the incoming flight and thought he could get through the intersection. Give or take some very short distances this could have been a near miss and we never would have heard about it.

Obviously includes ATC. They did warn, but no emergency action was issued?

 

[Edog537]

Then that now obviously includes ATC. They did warn, but no emergency action was issued?

This all happens very fast.

 

[Edog537]

That's my guess. He miscalculated the separation and speed of the incoming flight and thought he could get through the intersection. Give or take some very short distances this could have been a near miss and we never would have heard about it.

I doubt it. The Blackhawk was in the way, out of position, and unaware. Your thinking about fictional
Top Gun ****.

 

[Edog537]

We used to say “keep your head on a swivel” especially operating within Class C and B airspace which is around large airports. Helos are a lot more maneuverable, were usually VFR and generally operated low level below traffic patterns. Most of the time I would issue them traffic and they would maneuver as necessary to avoid other aircraft and if need be to ensure separation, issue an instruction such as “pass behind the RJ”then get a confirmation.

The controller has the responsibility to issue traffic (let each pilot know the type, distance, altitude and intentions of the other) so they are both aware and to make sure the helo pilot report the other aircraft “in sight” and then it was the helo pilots responsibility to maintain visual separation. Helos were easy to work and their crews were usually top shelf so they made my job much easier.

You are correct. This would have been a hard VFR flight. The bottom line is ATC doesn’t fly the aircraft or die when ATC screws up. Flying over water at night could have induced vertigo here. That usually results in flying in to the water.