re: .

quote:

---

First it was trans bathrooms. Stolen elections. Starbucks and Bud Light. CRT was in there for a good while. Now it’s fricking DEI. I mean, how the frick have you not caught on yet!?!

---

Now do the other side of the aisle if you truly want to be transparent



Spoiler alert:



You don’t

quote:

---

Only what the news is saying, that that “‘profile” is normally flown at 200 MSL and below. I’ve heard on the news that they collided at between 300 and 400.

---

On that particular section of the corridor starting just north of the Wilson bridge and going up past Reagan airport 200 was listed as the maximum (and obviously could be less than that). Someone else brought up 100 being the closer to the norm for military helicopters flying over the east bank in that section (not sure if time of day/night changed things).

If that was actually the correct and current regulated ceiling for helicopters for that section of the corridor I was wondering if the ATC had any role in reminding them or reporting them when above 200 there. Maybe it just comes from later reports on the flight from various flight data.

Hoover clarifies that nothing will truly be known until the investigation is completed, but his best guess at what happened based on ATC chatter:

- ATC told PAT about the incoming flight, where it was coming from and where it was heading, PAT called for Visual Separation, tower approved. This put the responsibility of avoiding the plane solely in the helicopter pilot's hands.

- From Hoover's experience doing low altitude night flights in a jet, he said doing anything visual, especially around a city and a body of water, is extremely difficult. Lights everywhere. PAT probably had visual on the plane but at some point lost it, perhaps fixed on something they THOUGHT was the plane.'

- ATC had "CA" going off for both aircraft, collision alarm, and that's when they called PAT and asked them if they still had visual confirmation of the plane. We don't hear the reply, so either they did on a separate channel or they failed to respond, that's when ATC asked them to go behind the plane. Moments later the collision happened.



Perhaps already discussed here.

quote:

---

that was actually the correct and current regulated ceiling for helicopters for that section of the corridor I was wondering if the ATC had any role in reminding them or reporting them when above 200 there. Maybe it just comes from later reports on the flight from various flight data.

---

If the controller is working two desks, and the helo asks for visual command, my guess is the controller has moved to other issues and usbg going to babysit the military pilot.

Right or wrong.

quote:

---

Frankly I’m wondering why a military copter is in a commercial landing/takeoff pattern at all.

---

I’m a complete layman when it comes to these things. But if I understand it correctly, they allow military aircraft, I’m guess helicopters only, to travel along the river, but only at very low altitude, like 100’ -200’ over the river. I guess, seeing how this has never happened before, so long as they stay low, this sort of thing doesn’t happen. For whatever reason though, last night this heiress flying over twice as high as it was supposed to. I think the question now is why.

quote:

---

My assumption is that there has to be a max altitude choppers can operate that near any of the approaches, and I'm curious if the chopper was flying too high at that point. But I agree, why bother getting ANYWHERE close.

---

There is. There’s basically a bunch of helicopter ‘interstates’ through cities that are given flight paths for them. The path down the River was at under 200 ft and extremely well posted and known.

I'm a complete layman as well and can't help but wonder why was a relatively inexperienced pilot flying the helicopter in a training mission at night through a crowded airspace?

This just came across my Facebook. I don’t know these guys but damn it puts it into more of a reality. Bunch of guys on a hunting trip headed home.

quote:

---

Gotta train them somehow, especially if it's a check ride

---

I’m really tired of this stupid comment.

Most military bases are in rural areas, or many at least. This idea the military needs to train people for night ops in downtown DC is absurd and laughable. Downvote all you want.

If that’s the best answer, shame on the army

quote:

---

Most military bases are in rural areas, or many at least. This idea the military needs to train people for night ops in downtown DC is absurd and laughable. Downvote all you want.

If that’s the best answer, shame on the army

---

I'm a navy guy so don't get me started on shaming the Army.