Data from the deadliest U.S. air accident in a generation show conflicting altitude readings
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ARLINGTON, Va. — Preliminary data showed conflicting readings about the altitudes of an airliner and Army helicopter when they collided near Reagan National Airport in Washington, killing 67 people, investigators said Saturday.
Investigators also said that about a second before impact, the jet’s flight recorder showed a change in its pitch. But they did not say whether that change in angle meant that pilots were trying to perform an evasive maneuver to avoid the crash.
Data from the jet’s flight recorder showed its altitude as 325 feet, plus or minus 25 feet, when the crash happened Wednesday night, National Transportation Safety Board officials told reporters. Data in the control tower, though, showed the Black Hawk helicopter at 200 feet at the time. The discrepancy has yet to be explained.
Investigators hope to reconcile the altitude differences with data from the helicopter’s black box, which is taking more time to retrieve because it was waterlogged. They also said they plan to refine the tower data, which can be less reliable.
“That’s what our job is, to figure that out,” said NTSB member Todd Inman, who grew agitated with reporters’ questions seeking more information and clarity about the readings during a Saturday evening news conference.
A midair collision between an Army helicopter and an American Airlines flight from Kansas killed all 67 people aboard the two aircraft.
He acknowledged that there was dissension within the investigative team about whether to release the information or wait until they had more data.
Officials say the helicopter’s maximum allowed altitude at the time was 200 feet.
There were no survivors on either aircraft. The collision occurred as an American Airlines flight from Wichita, Kan., carrying 60 passengers and four crew members was preparing to land at Reagan National Airport, just across the Potomac River from the nation’s capital, and hit an Army Black Hawk helicopter that apparently flew into the jet’s path. Three soldiers were on board the helicopter.
“This is a complex investigation,” said Brice Banning, NTSB investigator in charge. “There are a lot of pieces here. Our team is working hard to gather this data.”
Banning also discussed the last moments from the jet’s two black boxes, which captured sound in the cockpit and flight data.
“The crew had a verbal reaction,” Banning said, with the data recorder showing “the airplane beginning to increase its pitch. Sounds of impact were audible about one second later, followed by the end of the recording.”
Inman expressed frustration, too, that accidents like these occur, noting that the board has made “several hundred” recommendations to improve aviation that have not been acted upon.
“From tragedy we draw knowledge to improve the safety for us all. That’s what we’re doing right now, we’re dealing with tragedy, but we need to improve safety,” he said.
“You want to do something about it? Adopt the recommendation of the NTSB. You’ll save lives,” he said, adding that he has spent hours with victims’ families since the crash. “I don’t want to have to meet with those parents like that again.”
The families, he said, are struggling.
“Some wanted to give us hugs. Some are just mad and angry,” Inman said. “They are just all hurt. And they still want answers, and we want to give them answers.”
Earlier Saturday, recovery crews and divers searched the river and cleared wreckage. A Coast Guard cutter outfitted with a crane waited nearby, as occasional recovery team members slipped into the water amid a group of smaller emergency boats.
The remains of 42 people had been pulled from the river by Saturday afternoon, including 38 that had been positively identified, Washington emergency officials said. They expect to recover all of the remains, though the wreckage of the plane’s fuselage will probably have to be pulled from the water to get the rest.
At least seven people were killed and 19 others injured when an air ambulance crashed to the ground in a busy Philadelphia neighborhood, officials say.
Also Saturday, the Army identified Cpt. Rebecca M. Lobach, of Durham, N.C., as the third soldier who died in the crash. The names of the other two were released Friday, but Lobach’s name was withheld at the time at the request of her family.
Army officials have said the helicopter crew was highly experienced, and familiar with the congested skies around the city. Military aircraft frequently make such flights to practice routes they would use if key government officials need to be evacuated during an attack or major catastrophe.
Investigators are examining the actions of the military pilot and air traffic control. The Federal Aviation Administration has long struggled with a shortage of controllers.
Full NTSB investigations typically take at least a year, though investigators hope to have a preliminary report within 30 days. Hundreds of responders were taking part in the recovery effort, officials said.
With the nation already grieving the collision, an air ambulance plane slammed into a busy intersection in a crowded Philadelphia neighborhood Friday night, killing all six people on board, including a child who had just undergone treatment at a hospital, and at least one person on the ground. Nineteen were reported injured, and at least three remained hospitalized Saturday, though officials said it could be days until the full toll of the dead and injured is clear.
Wednesday’s crash was the deadliest in the U.S. since Nov. 12, 2001, when a jet slammed into a residential neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens, just after takeoff from Kennedy Airport. The crash killed all 260 people on board and five people on the ground.
Experts regularly highlight that plane travel is overwhelmingly safe, but the crowded airspace around Reagan National can challenge even the most experienced pilots.
Lauer writes for the Associated Press.
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