The Black Hawk military helicopter pilot who crashed with a passenger plane in Washington, DC, in January ignored the instructions to change the course seconds before the accident, according to a new report.
The report, published by the New York Times on Sunday, detailed the Black Hawk exchanges with air traffic controllers in the period before the disaster, which left 67 people dead.
According to the report, the Black Hawk pilot, Captain Rebecca Lobach, was carrying out her annual flight evaluation and co -pilot, noncommissioned officer 2 Andrew Loyd Eaves, served as a flight instructor.
When air traffic controllers informed the Black Hawk that there was a nearby plane, Lobach and Aleros recognized the message and requested to fly by “visual separation”, a common practice that allows airplanes to avoid the traffic control of Thiroms Thiroms traffic based on the fobines.
55 victims in Washington, DC in the air, the collision in the air removed from the Potomac River as the recovery operation continues
Emergency workers recover the debris of the Potomac River after the collision of Flight 5342 of American Eagle and a Black Hawk helicopter, as seen from Virginia on January 30, 2025. (Reuters/Carlos Barria)
“The Black Hawk was 15 seconds from the crossroads with the Jet. The noncommissioned officer to the ALO and then directed his attention to Captain Lobach. He told him that he believed that air traffic control wanted them to turn left, Townd the East River wrote.
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“Turning left would have opened more space between the helicopter and flight 5342, which was heading to track 33 at an altitude of approximately 300 feet.
The bodies are on the ground next to emergency vehicles, near the crash site after American Eagle Flight 5342 crashed with a black hawk helicopter while approaching the national port of Reagan Washon and crashed into the Potomac River, outside the wash washing. 30, 2025. (Carlos Barria/Reuters)
The clash instantly captivated national scrutiny in air traffic control policies, with Sec. Sean Duffy transport opening an investigation.
Duffy announced plans in March to reinforce air traffic control systems with the latest technology in the next four years, while using artificial intelligence (AI) to identify “hot spots” where nearby meetings between Aircur frequently.
They have an almost false 85 leg or Close calls in Reagan National, According to a report by the National Travel Security Board (NTSB). The nearby calls were identified as incidents when there are less than 200 feet or vertical separation and 1,500 feet or lateral separation between the aircraft.
President Donald Trump listens to while the Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy speaks in James Brady Press’s report hall at the White House on Thursday, January 30, 2025 in Washington, DC (Photo of Alex Brandon/AP)
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“We are having almost missions, and if we don’t change our way, let’s lose lives,” Duffy told journalists at that time. “That was not done. Maybe there was an focus on something more than security, but in this administration, we are focusing on security.”