President Trump is delivering remarks from the White House Brady Press briefing room in the aftermath of a terrible aviation disaster.
The FAA said the midair crash occurred before 9 pm EST. American Airlines Flight 5342 was inbound to Reagan National at an altitude of about 400 feet (122 meters) and a speed of about 140 mph (225 kph) when it rapidly lost altitude over the Potomac River, according to data from its radio transponder. The Canadian-made Bombardier CRJ-701 twin-engine jet, manufactured in 2004, can be configured to carry up to 70 passengers.
A few minutes before landing, air traffic controllers asked the arriving commercial jet if it could land on the shorter Runway 33 at Reagan National and the pilots said they were able. Controllers then cleared the plane to land on Runway 33. Flight-tracking sites showed the plane adjust its approach to the new runway.
Less than 30 seconds before the crash, an air traffic controller asked the helicopter if it had the arriving plane in sight. The controller made another radio call to the helicopter moments later: “PAT 25 pass behind the CRJ.” Seconds after that, the two aircraft collided.
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Troll say what?
Who licked the red off of your lollipop?
IMO, he did this briefing bec the Dems were politicizing the accident to lay blame on PDJTs firing of ancillary people in USG.
YT Chanel Captain Steeeve is a seasoned, current pilot. He gives a blow-by-blow interpretation of the tower controller convo with the helicopter pilot. The Captain gives his assessment of the error causing the accident. He also tells how the airlines with utilize this situation in their training so it won’t happen again.
Trump is not a narcissist, he is a showman. Narcissists abuse and control their family. His family adores him. They wouldn’t if he abused them.
Trump’s ability to program a spreadsheet and Zionists, donors to his campaign, etc etc has nothing to do with with this accident.
The pilot of a plane or helicopter, like a ship’s captain, or a car driver, has the DUTY to avoid running into another plane/ship/car/wharf/helicopter, irrespective of what an air traffic controller directs them to do. In addition, there are warning systems to alert pilots.
Having said that, bad weather events, human distractions, tiredness, a stray bird, a wind gust, lightning, a screw loose somewhere important on the vehicle, last minute changes, can all cause accidents, as well as plain rotten bad luck when a number of small things add together.
The President is no less qualified to speak here than his predecessor, President Reagan was to speak on the Soviet Union’s downing of KAL007 On September 1, 198 with a Sukhoi Su-15 interceptor aircraft. The flight was en route from New York City to Seoul, South Korea, via Anchorage, Alaska. All 269 people on board, including a US Representative, were killed. So rubbish, you have no power (of persuasion) here.
Exactly one year before the tragedy, check this:
https://viewfromthewing.com/diversity-in-the-skies-faas-controversial-shift-in-air-traffic-controller-hiring/
Air traffic controller was doing the job of two people during DC plane crash due to tower being understaffed, FAA says
Ronald Reagan Washington ‘one of the most demanding airports’ for pilots, who face ‘helicopter alley’
Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport has the busiest runaway in the US, with an average of 819 takeoffs per day – which experts say likely contributed to Wednesday’s air disaster.
The airport – also known as DCA – also has two other runways, launching 62 flights an hour, according to a 2023 report by the Alexandria Times.
It is in proximity to two other airports, including international Washington Dulles, and various military bases which also launch large volumes of aircraft, making for crowded airspace where precision is key.
“DCA is one of the most demanding airports in the world. It also has what’s known as ‘helicopter alley’ with hundreds of police, military, news and rescue helicopters criss-crossing the Potomac River – it’s crazy out there,” Captain Ross “Rusty” Aimer, a retired United Airlines pilot and aviation expert, told The Post.
Now that’s fishy.
wrong thread
I think he did a tremendous service in the fact that he made an entire nation realize that they have been set up to be victims of this ridiculous equity and inclusion policy. it needlessly endangers the lives of millions of everyday Americans…this practice cannot be left to stand. it must be eliminated
You apparently are confused about many things.
F#CK OFF
The crew of the Blackhawk helicopter was where they were supposed to be. The CRJ700 was where it was supposed to be. The UH60 pilot assumed responsibility for visual separation with the CRJ700. Unfortunately, he was looking at the wrong aircraft. He never saw them coming. It’s as simple as that. Shit happens. I’ve been there. Pray for them and their families, and for the passengers and crew on the airplane.
SAD TRUTH
ATC CONTROLS The AIRWAYS and RUNWAYS By Regulations and Rules – NOT By Turning Off the Engines on the Aircraft.
” Towers have been established to provide for a safe, orderly, and expeditious flow of traffic on and in the vicinity of an airport. ” https://www.faa.gov/air_traffic/publications/atpubs/atc_html/chap2_section_1.html
ULTIMATELY The AIRCRAFT COMMANDER / PILOT IS Responsible.
AVIATE, NAVIGATE, COMMUNICATE
PAT25 was 100 feet higher than the maximum altitude for the route. Additionally, the UH60 was out over the water instead of over the shoreline, meaning he was flying west of the published route.
Shortage of air traffic controllers and DEI causes airing out on Fox News shows today, look for it elsewhere as well
Hey FAA !
New Rule — You gotta hire qualified and talented applicants …
… even if they’re white guys
REVEALED: The eerily similar near-miss between passenger plane and helicopter in Washington DC just 24 hours before deadly American Airlines crash killed 67
A passenger flight had to abort landing at Reagan National Airport in Washington DC the day before American Airlines Flight 5342 collided in midair with a helicopter.
Republic Airways Flight 4514 was forced to back out of touching down and had to make a second approach after a helicopter appeared near its flight path.
That’s according to an audio recording from air traffic control captured on Tuesday and heard by The Washington Post.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14344591/american-airlines-crash-washington-dc-hours-plane-missed-helicopter.html
From Rick Womick on Facebook
As a retired Boeing 737 Captain from American Airlines with 31 years of service. I have flown into Washington’s DCA airport over a hundred times. I can tell you EXACTLY what happed last night and why!
But before I do let me say this about comments that are being made about seeing other aircraft lights at night.
On such a clear night at that low altitude of 400-500’, all the lights of the surrounding cities blend in, making it next to impossible to see an oncoming aircraft’s lights.
Ok…so here is what happened, why it happened, whose is responsible, and how to prevent this from ever happening again!
1. The Regional Jet (RJ) was on approach to Runway 01 (landing to the north).
2. The RJ requested a circle to land on Runway 33 which requires the pilot to now land to the northwest instead of to the north. The DCA Control Tower granted this request which now put the RJ crew on a VFR approach and allows the RJ pilot to remain on the EASTERN side of the Potomac. Such a clearance subsequently allows and requires the Regional Jet to cross into and through the VFR Corridor, from the east, at a very low altitude, on its final segment of the visual approach to Runway 33. The VFR Corridor, which runs along the eastern shoreline of the Potomac, is exactly where the military helicopter was located and was flying on a southern heading.
3. This is actually a normal procedure for the smaller, regional jets landing at DCA, because they are able to land on the shorter runway. (I always had to land on runway 01 or runway 19 because we were a Boeing 737…three times the size of the RJ.)
The advantage for the RJ is during the roll out after landing on runway 33, the RJ terminal is just off to the left. So a very short taxi which saves time and fuel = $$$
4. So, by requesting a “Circle to Land on runway 33,” the RJ, like the helicopter, now becomes responsible for visual clearance and separation from all other aircraft.
5. It is also my understanding that Military helicopters are not required to have ADSB. If that is true then neither aircraft would have had an electronic traffic alert in the cockpit warning them of an impending conflict or that another aircraft was close and nearby.
6. If the DCA control tower would have denied the RJ request to land on runway 33 and thus required the RJ to continue the approach to land on runway 01, then the RJ would have remained on the WESTERN shore of the Potomac while the helicopter was on the EASTERN shore of the Potomac. The RESULT would have been NO ACCIDENT-NO MIDAIR!
7. Who’s to blame:
-Once the RJ pilot started his Circle to Land on runway 33, the pilots now bear the full responsibility to avoid other aircraft. The same is true with the helicopter who is flying under visual flight rule. Both crews must see and avoid other aircraft.
-However, the “greater” blame rest upon the DCA Control Tower and its PROCEDURES. The tower procedures MUST be changed, so that whenever there is VFR traffic (helicopter in this situation) in the VFR Corridor along the eastern edge of the Potomac, then ALL AIRCRAFT must land on Runway 01. This will keep all commercial aircraft on the western edge of the Potomac while VFR aircraft traverse through the corridor on the eastern edge of the Potomac.
8. How to PREVENT this from ever happening again:
-DCA Tower/ATC procedures must be changed to require that NO CLEARANCE for a “Circle to Land on Runway 33” should ever be granted by the DCA Control Tower when there is traffic in the VFR Corridor! Such a clearance allows a commercial aircraft to fly directly through the entire perimeter of the VFR Corridor (eastern shoreline of the Potomac) at a very low altitude, and thus create a potential, catastrophic conflict/accident.
-This procedure change must have no regard to weather conditions. Whether it’s clear and unlimited visibility or marginal VFR conditions, it cannot be allowed when there is traffic in the VFR Corridor.
-ATC fell short of monitoring separation between the RJ and the helicopter…human error that was not purposeful.
The controller was put into a situation that no one could recover from last night.
-Both cockpit crews failed to see and avoid…human error that was not purposeful. Neither crew in the helicopter or the RJ could see each other at 400’ with city lights blurring their ability to see other aircraft
-If military aircraft do not have ADSB, then ADSB needs to be installed with the capability to turn it off in a wartime situation.
Bottom line…break down of responsibilities and unavoidable human error by all involved. 😩
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Excellent. Thanks. And distressing. PROCEDURES are to blame? Don’t we have human beings as ATCs so that they can use judgment and NOT grant a clearance?
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Yes and no.
Even if you have the best most highly qualified people in the world, solid PROCEDURAL separation allows the controllers to manage the high stress workload, which will ALWAYS require human input.
The procedures aren’t designed to replace human judgement, but rather, to simplify decision making in time critical situations.
“-ATC fell short of monitoring separation between the RJ and the helicopter…human error that was not purposeful.”
This is the case in almost every mid-air or tarmac collision, and so almost certainly is the case here. Additionally, reports are now indicating one ATC was given two duties: jets and helicopters. FUBAR.
“-If military aircraft do not have ADSB, then ADSB needs to be installed with the capability to turn it off in a wartime situation.”
At the very least ADSB should be installed on training exercises taking place in areas with heavy air traffic.
74 Gear on YT has a distressing report on an F/18 trapped over clouds and nearly out of fuel over St. Louis. He wasn’t equipped to follow an ILS or track a VOR. The military should at least be given the portable solutions student pilots have available.
The Army Hawk was apparently 100 to 200’ above its 200’ agl hard ceiling. That’s a huge factor.
https://www.frontpagemag.com/how-obama-and-biden-destroyed-greatest-military-frontpage-magazine/
Ace: Reports: The Air Traffic Control Tower in DC Was Understaffed
“Why was it understaffed? Well, the claim being made by corrupt paid-off NeverTrumpers and leftwing media propagandists is that Trump Did It in the past 8 days. Click-farmer and disinformation peddler Aaron Rupar claimed that the crash was caused by Trump firing the head of the TSA — who has nothing to do with air flights, and is only responsible for setting the correct molestation parameters for groping people at the airport — and the head of the Coast Guard, because he decided that Boats Are the Airplanes of the Sea.
Also pushing this line was CNN’s criminally-stupid Bakari Sellers and “Muh Principles” NeverTrump grifter/nobody Heath Mayo.
There is an alternative explanation, though: The Biden Administration stopped hiring qualified air traffic controllers because the qualified candidates they were getting were “too white.”
They changed the test to be “biographical” — code for, “We’re going to ask you about any racism you’ve experienced in your life,” wink-wink — and refused to hire 3000 qualified “too white” candidates.
And also, too mentally sane and too non-developmentally-disabled. Biden pushed to recruit “people with severe intellectual and psychiatric disabilities,” because those are just the folks you want in the incredibly stressful air traffic control towers where workers are literally keeping planes from hitting each other every minute.” …….
link: Ace of Spades HQ
You have to say they wanted this. Just like they wanted LA burned. And Laken Riley raped and murdered.
Malachi 4:
This is coming soon and suddenly, and everyone will know it is You, Lord! We praise the Name above all Names, King Jesus!
I now wonder if the ‘woman’ in the BH was trans and soon to be expelled from the Military by PDT’s EO of yesterday. Nothing would surprise me. The BH was a direct hit on the plane.
There is unconfirmed speculation of that very possibility elsewhere on the Internet tonight.
And that co-pilot remains the only un-named crew member as of tonight.
There is also an armed trans terrorist on the loose, associated with the trans that killed the border agent on Inauguration Day.
Fox appears to have censored almost a minute of what Trump said about Buttegieg on their “Live NOW from FOX” vid of this PC.
The sound completely cuts out.
DEI hires.
I thought I heard that Chairwoman of the NTSB when she was speaking today in that press conference that “this will involve a whole of government approach” . . .
something like that which sounded like that phrase Mike Pence always seemed so proud of using in the early days of the “Covid” press conferences, “a whole of government approach” . . .
have they had dinner together, or something?
A trial run? Just a test?
The DAY before the crash…This was an American Airlines flight too. Wonder if the stock was shorted for American Airlines to make $$ off it.
REVEALED: Passenger Flight Forced to Abort Landing at DCA Due to Helicopter Crossing Flight Path One Day Before Chopper-Plane Collision
https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2025/01/revealed-passenger-flight-forced-abort-landing-dca-due/
7 days before American Airlines stock was getting thumbs down even though earnings were up here:
https://www.fool.com/investing/2025/01/23/why-american-airlines-stock-is-losing-altitude-tod/
and then after the crash:
https://www.marketwatch.com/story/aviation-stocks-in-focus-after-deadly-collision-american-airlines-stock-declines-25e4516d
American Airlines is owned by a mix of institutional investors, retail investors, and company insiders. The largest shareholders include Vanguard Group, BlackRock, and company executives like CEO Robert Isom and former CEO Doug Parker.
Larry Fink and his little posse
Sec Duffy stmt re meeting with families…
Well folks, this looks legit. Allegedly this was the pilot undergoing instruction in the Blackhawk. It could very well have been a suicide since this person was about to be drummed out of the Army.
https://www.smerconish.com/exclusive-content/living-to-serve-living-as-myself-a-transgender-service-members-perspective/
Lots of speculation here by people unfamiliar with operating in this kind of environment, which is understandable.
People who have never actually flown an aircraft at night have no idea how difficult it is to pick up aircraft lights against a backdrop of thousands of ground lights. It is much, MUCH more difficult than spotting aircraft lights against the empty night sky.
It’s also hard for people to understand how the crew of the helicopter could say they saw the aircraft, but hit it anyway. I’m quite positive they saw AN aircraft, but was it the right one? At any given time, there are probably 3 or 4 aircraft lining up to land. Unless the controller is sitting right in the cockpit next to you, there’s no way to really be sure you are both talking about the same potential threat.
People are wondering why the helicopter crew was doing a training mission in busy airspace, or why they were even there at all.
Why? Because it’s their job. Like it or not, those crews have been tasked to transport crews around DC. The airport isn’t going anywhere. The helicopter base isn’t going anywhere. The operating environment is what it is, no different than crews flying around Afghanistan, or private charters flying out of Jackson Hole.
Crews can’t just avoid the area, if their JOB is to transport people through it. They need to be trained and ready, and that means repetitions and practice–exposure.
The airspace is busy, but it’s nothing compared to the LA basin or New York.
The key to safety is a set of strong procedural rules for deconfliction and crews that are 100% vigilant in their mission to “see and avoid” Unfortunately, even the best devised plans can only be successful if everybody is following them precisely
That said, the only way to positively eliminate the risk is to simply park all the iron and forego the mission, which is never gonna happen. Aviation will ALWAYS require the acceptance of some level of risk.
Not sure if the helicopter crew was wearing night vision devices or not, but just to provide a little background info for those who may have only seen these portrayed in movies:
NVDs are not magic and don’t really help in an environment with a lot of background lights. If the lighting is sufficiently bright, the view through the goggles can be worse than using nothing at all. Why? Because the optics will turn down the gain on the entire picture. The brightest lights in the view may “bloom” and overpower everything else in the image
Bizarre. Crew of 3 army aviators on the Blackhawk. 2 have been officially identified as white males. The 3rd has not been identified, other than official reports that “she” was a “woman” and “female.”
There are unconfirmed posts alleging “she” was a male-to-female transgender Blackhawk pilot named Jo Ellis, who allegedly made vehement anti-Trump posts on social media. “She” posted a manifesto-like essay the day before the crash.
Here’s the link to the “manifesto”:
https://www.smerconish.com/exclusive-content/living-to-serve-living-as-myself-a-transgender-service-members-perspective/
If the transgender angle is merely a hoax, and it wasn’t Jo Ellis, then why hasn’t the female pilot been identified?
If the tranny angle is true, seems like Trump got the info very early and sat on it, but that explains why he was so aggressively denouncing DEI in the presser, he particularly read out loud the DEI policy about recruiting people with serious mental & psychiatric problems….
You know why exactly. You’ve answered your own question.
?? Think so? How?
It was a hoax, Jo Ellis is alive. The question remains.
Well, that’s finally been debunked. I literally did not sleep last night trying to vet that hoax. Smh
https://www.newsweek.com/washington-dc-plane-crash-jo-ellis-trans-helicopter-pilot-wrongly-named-2024149
Alex Jones is reporting that Pete Hegseth stated the helicopter was on a “Continuity of Government” mission, but I advise listening carefully.
Just to be accurate, in the Infowars clip, Hegseth actually stated that the crew was “TRAINING FOR” a Continuity of Government mission, which is not the same thing.
If a crew was described as”training for” a nuclear strike mission, you wouldn’t automatically assume they were dropping live nukes on the countryside.
That said, we really have no idea if they were training, conducting a real mission, or something else. All we have is what we are being fed.
Our President called it like he saw it. So proud of this man.
He called the baby ugly.
FAA policy of hiring people with severe disabilities such as blindness, deafness and mental issues especially for an industry where safety must be paramount is completely asinine and downright evil.
The ACT asked the helicopter pilots did he see the plane. The problem is that he didn’t specify which plane.
It’s more than likely the heli pilot was focused on another flight and never saw the American Eagle flight.
Jo Ellis, anyone?
I used to fly into DCA as the captain of a major airline and in my opinion, DCA should have been closed many years ago due to the insane airspace restrictions and the amount of traffic, all of which is funneled into tighter and tighter airspace. The fact that you have procedures which allow crossing the final approach course is proof enough that the patterns are flawed beyond belief. Throw in the fact that the tower was undermanned with task saturation a regular occurrence and you have the recipe for more mishaps like Wednesday’s. Close DCA and move to BWI and let the congress criminals loose their easy access to trips home. It’s a matter of common sense and safety.
Dailywire piece on how DEI became part of the FAA in 2013 courtesy obama and how the hiring process became “off the street” vs. qualification based… no wonder we have a drastic increase in “near-misses” and airline tragedies.
Democrats have a history of scandals in aviation: https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-is-right-democrats-have-a-history-of-racial-scandals-in-aviation?topStoryPosition=4
It is now rumored that one of the pilots was a trannie. Seen any pictures yet of the fellow? I’ve seen everyone (officially) except him. His picture I’ve seen unofficially.
Allegation is this:
Trump issued EO – Monday
Tranny came out – Tuesday
Crash occurred – Wednesday.
They were a half mile off course.
They were 175’ above ceiling.
They turned at the last minute into the crash.
Knowing what’s going on right now in our sick society … this needs explanations.
We need the name of both pilots.
The ATC radio tapes from the previous day’s helo traffic conflicts at DCA. These were seemingly intentional acts to create conflicts.
The helo flight path overlay the airline arrival flight path at a safe, expected altitude … until … helo altitude changed dramatically up into a conflict altitude requiring a go-around by the airline. This occurred, twice in this attached ATC video I might add, on short final. This couldn’t possibly have been a mistake.
DEI in the FAA….nah!
Nothing but the best were hired in the Biden Administration…
https://truthsocial.com/@1776Stonewall/113920974349887986
My daughter is a figure skater- both an individual competitor and a member of the only nationally competitive Theatre On Ice team in Florida, Space Coast Hurricanes Theatre On Ice. We knew one of the families lost- Roger & Stephanie and their adopted son, Corey. We didn’t know them well. I met Roger while sitting next to him in the bleachers at a competition last year in North Carolina. He was a devout Christian- they all were. He had a tremendous sense of humor, was a foodie, and he had an encyclopedic knowledge of figure skating- his is quite literally the reason my daughter is working on some of the things she is working on now. It was Roger that guided us and it has helped her overcome some challenges. Roger gave me his phone number and asked me to text anytime if I had any questions or just wanted to chat. I never made the call. Never sent a text. I know they are all at peace in eternity now with our Lord Jesus Christ, but it is still sad and I will always regret not building a friendship with them.
On the politics- I don’t need the details. No one does. Zoom out. Here’s what you need to know: Our government has a $6 trillion dollar budget and with that, it could not protect 67 people.
No doubt, they will propose that the problem was not enough money- and they’ll probably get more.
Life is precious.
This tragedy, within its intimate human details, is a great reminder.
Thank you for this.
WP article explains the normal analysis of what the most likely explanations are for the catastrophic mistakes that led to the midair collision.
https://archive.is/wg5hY#selection-873.0-1167.282
And I agree with the “expert” assessment … *unless* kamikaze style suicide is involved. I don’t think that should be excluded at this stage.
A few things I notice in the most current info is (a) the helo was way off course in a known critical navigation corridor and (b) was flying *way* too high and (c) made a seeming last moment turn *into* the crash rather than away and (d) it appeared it was in an accelerating, nose-down posture rather than a nose up braking or sudden bank avoidance posture … no evidence of alarm on the crashing helo, just straight in and through. Very, very atypical from expected pilot behavior in the last moments prior to catastrophe.