The chairman of the National Road Safety Board (NTSB) said on Thursday that based on “preliminary information,” Black Hawk helicopter crews wore night vision goggles before a fatal collision with an American Airlines jet near Washington last week He said it appears he was. DC
NTSB Chairman Jennifer Homendy spoke with a Capitol Hill reporter after briefing members of the House Committee on crash crashes that killed all 67 people on two aircraft.
Homedy was asked if the Black Hawk pilot was wearing night vision goggles.
“We believe they wear night vision goggles considering missions and whether they've heard or not heard of the CVR (cockpit audio recorder) “Homendy said.
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Crews will retrieve the wreckage of American Airlines Flight 5342 on the Potomac River near Washington, DC (Lee Green from Fox News Digital)
She explained that if the crew were not wearing night vision goggles, the policy would require them to state that they were not cooperating.
“That wasn't on the CVR (the audio recorder in the cockpit),” Homendy said. “We never made that a sign in the CVR, which means they didn't put them on. But again, it's a spare.”
Homedy told reporters that night about the Black Hawk mission she called “Check Ride.”
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The Army Black Hawk helicopter surrounded on the left collided into the air with an American Airlines jet near Reagan Washington National Airport. (Earthcam)
She said there are three check rides that the Army does. One of them includes instruments like night vision goggles and an annual check to determine the proficiency of a flight pilot.
She noted that this particular flight was a combination of an annual check ride for the nighttime goggles, she said.
Senate Commerce Committee Chairman R-Texas Ted Cruz told reporters Thursday that Black Hawk helicopters have turned off automatic dependency surveillance broadcasts (ADS-B), which are permitted on military aircraft.
“Because this was a training mission, there was no compelling national security reason for the ADS-B to be turned off,” Cruz said after sitting at the NTSB and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) briefing. Ta.
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Investigators examine the remains from the Black Hawk helicopter on the Potomac River after a fatal crash with an American Airlines plane. (NTSB)
ADS-B is an advanced surveillance technology used to track aircraft locations. The Black Hawk had a transponder that was displayed on the radar, but the ADS-B is significantly more accurate.
Last week, D-Wash. Senator Maria Cantwell of the FAA questioned the FAA about why ADS-B has been deactivated and allowed military flights to fly since 2018.
During a briefing Thursday, the FAA said it had begun reviewing airports with high volumes of mixed helicopters and plane traffic nearby after Cruz said he wanted a safety review on the issue.
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Still, after the crash, the FAA imposed significant restrictions on helicopter flights near Reagan National Airport in Arlington, Virginia, until at least late February.
If police, medical or presidential transport helicopters must use airspace, civilian planes are not permitted to be in the same area, the FAA recommendation states.
Reuters contributed to this report.
