Bombshell Report Sheds Light On Stunning Mistakes Leading To Plane Crash Over Potomac
The Army Black Hawk helicopter that collided with an American Airlines plane near Reagan National Airport just a week ago had its tracking system switched off at the time the incident occurred, according to newly released information.
Texas Republican Ted Cruz revealed the bombshell on Thursday during a conversation with members of the press. Cruz said that the helicopter’s automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast, otherwise known as ADS-B, which is allowed for military aircraft, was not turned on when it tragically collided with a passenger jet over the Potomac River in our nation’s capital.
A total of 67 people died as a result of the incident.
“This was a training mission, so there was no compelling national security reason for ADS-B to be turned off,” Cruz went on to say, attending a briefing by the National Transportation and Safety Board and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
According to the FAA, an ADS-B is an “advanced surveillance technology that combines an aircraft’s positioning source, aircraft avionics, and a ground infrastructure to create an accurate surveillance interface between aircraft and Air Traffic Control.” While the Black Hawk possessed a transponder to appear on radar, the ADS-B is far more accurate and reliable.
“I will say the NTSB, they are serious professionals. Any time there is an aviation accident, especially one involving a loss of life, they engage in a serious and thorough investigation, as they should. And what happened with this accident was tragic and catastrophic,” Cruz, who currently serves as the chair of the Senate Commerce Committee, also said.
“Sixty-seven souls lost their lives. We need to follow the evidence. We need to determine exactly what caused it,” he continued. “And then we need to learn lessons from the cause of that accident. Do everything possible to prevent a subsequent accident.”
Sen. Maria Cantwell, a Washington Democrat, raised questions about why the military granted its military aircraft to fly with the ADS-B deactivated, which has been the case since 2018.
The FAA revealed during the briefing Thursday that the agency was now reviewing airports with high volumes of mixed helicopter and airplane traffic after the Texas senator asked for a safety review on the topic.
Jennifer Homendy, the Chair for the NTSB, stated Thursday that based on “preliminary information,” it seems the crew aboard the Black Hawk were wearing their night-vision goggles before the collision occurred.
“We do believe, given the mission and given what we’ve heard or not heard on the CVR (cockpit voice recorder), that they were wearing night-vision goggles,” Homendy said. She then said that if crew members weren’t wearing the goggles, policy would then require them to say they were flying unaided.
“That was not on the CVR (cockpit voice recorder),” Homendy went on to explain. “We did not find any indication of that on the CVR, which means they would not have had them on. But, again, it’s preliminary.”
Homendy said the mission for the helicopter crew that night was a “check ride.” There are three of these that the Army performs, she continued, with one of them being geared toward instruments like night-vision goggles, and an annual check to ensure a pilot’s proficiency.
She revealed the deadly flight was a combination of a night-vision goggles check ride and an annual check ride.
