The Big Questions Experts Are Asking About The DC Helicopter And Plane Crash

At around 9 p.m. Eastern time on January 29, an American Airlines regional jet collided with a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter while approaching Runway 33 at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Washington, D.C. "PAT25, pass behind the CRJ," an air traffic controller said 30 seconds before the crash, asking the Black Hawk helicopter if they had the passenger plane in sight. Then they collided. "I just saw a fireball and then it was just gone. I haven't seen anything since they hit the river. But it was a CRJ and a helicopter that hit," a second air traffic controller said, according to Reuters.

The plane — a Bombardier CRJ-700 jet — was traveling from Wichita, Kansas, and carrying 60 passengers and four crew members. The Sikorsky Black Hawk army helicopter was carrying three soldiers. Search and rescue efforts are underway, but authorities do not expect to find any survivors. The tragedy shook the nation, causing intense speculation as to how such a collision could have occurred near an airport with exceptionally strict safety protocols. Experts are now asking questions, as well. 

While many people are speculating about the cause of the collision, experts are cautioning against that, noting that there are still many unanswered questions, one of which involves the equipment in the Black Hawk helicopter — specifically, was any of it malfunctioning? That may explain why the helicopter was estimated to be flying at least 100 feet higher than it should have been, though its exact altitude at the time of the collision is unclear, as the investigation is still in its early stages. FlightAware data from the time of the incident shows 375 feet as the last recorded altitude of the American Airlines plane that was struck, possibly revealing the helicopter's approximate altitude at the time of the collision.

According to BBC, both the American Airlines plane and the military helicopter were visible on air traffic control radar. Likewise, audio recorded during the incident reveals that air traffic control had instructed the helicopter to pass behind the airplane after asking whether the helicopter pilots were aware of the passenger aircraft. Why the helicopter failed to follow those instructions — in addition to its excessive altitude — is unknown at this time, but experts are asking whether some kind of equipment malfunction or communications breakdown may have contributed to this outcome.

In an interview with First Coast News, former U.S. Army pilot Keith Maynard said that flying around the Reagan airport is challenging for several reasons, but primarily due to high traffic. A number of restrictions have been put in place to prevent accidents, including restrictions on flying near monuments. According to Maynard, military helicopters like the Black Hawk have exclusive low-level routes, so pilots flying them have to be "familiar with which way the traffic is going on that day."

The military aircraft's altitude wasn't supposed to exceed 200 feet, but indications that it may have been flying as high as nearly 400 feet have left experts questioning what may have resulted in that discrepancy. While equipment malfunction has been put forth as one possible answer, there are other potential reasons for the altitude deviation, as well, such as pilot error. The National Transportation Safety Board, which is responsible for investigating the collision and determining the cause, has stressed that it is looking at every possible scenario. 

Jennifer Homendy, current chair of the NTSB, said during a press briefing that the agency "will look at all the humans that were involved in this accident. We will look at the aircraft. We will look at the helicopter. We will look at the environment in which they were operating." She noted that this is the standard process for investigating these sorts of incidents.

Speaking with Sky News, military analyst Sean Bell said that the airspace around Washington, D.C. is a "fiercely controlled" zone, which means that pilots "have to follow strict instructions." This makes the collision all the more baffling.

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has confirmed that Black Hawk pilots were wearing night vision goggles during their flight, so it is unclear why the helicopter did not see the plane. According to Bell, however, night goggles don't work as well in busy cities. "You would not pick out an airliner if you were in another aircraft, because it will be against lots of other lights," he said. In any case, the military analyst continued, it would be "wrong at this stage to say it's anybody's fault."

"What we can say is the investigation is likely to focus on why it looks like the civilian aircraft was exactly on the right flight path, but somehow the procedural deconfliction failed," Bell explained.

Aviation experts have stressed that flying remains a very safe activity and incidents like the tragic one over Washington D.C. are incredibly rare — in fact, the last deadly crash in the U.S. involving a commercial plane occurred in 2009 when a Bombardier DHC-8 struck a house, killing one person on the ground, four crew members, and 45 passengers. Prior to that, a plane crash in Kentucky in 2006 — caused by using the wrong runway — resulted in a total of 49 deaths. Another plane crash in 2001, that one involving an American Airlines flight over New York, resulted in 260 deaths.

Experts say that discovering the cause of the deadly incident between the Black Hawk helicopter and American Airlines plane may help prevent similar future catastrophes from occurring. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is now investigating the crash, noting during its first press briefing following the incident that it had initially stayed back, giving rescue crews priority in searching for potential survivors. The NTSB's preliminary report on what may have caused this collision is expected to arrive in 30 days. Officials have said that the flight data recorders ("black boxes") from both aircraft have been recovered from the wreckage, which should help shed light on the matter.