The National Transportation Safety Board released a report detailing more than 15,000 cases of “near-misses” between helicopters and airplanes at Reagan National Airport in just three years.
According to the NTSB, these incidents were recorded before the collision between the American Airlines jet and the Army helicopter, which killed 67 people on January 29.
The preliminary report states that the U.S. Secretary of Transportation took “swift actions” to restrict helicopter traffic near Reagan National.
However, they also recommended that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) prohibit helicopter operations near the airport and find an alternative route.
The report states that helicopters can fly at altitudes up to 200 feet, leaving only 75 feet of vertical separation from an airplane landing on one of the runways, creating an “unacceptable risk to aviation safety.”
“This has been American‘s main focus since late January,” said Robert Isom, CEO of American, during a J.P. Morgan conference.
Isom also stated that American created a “continuous care office” to help families in the long term. He added that the airline has also been cooperating with the NTSB during the investigation.
Photo and video: Unsplash. This content was created with the help of AI and reviewed by the editorial team.
