Radio calls captured the moment air traffic controllers realized a military helicopter and commercial jet collided.
67 people died in the collision, as the passenger jet was just seconds away from landing at Regan National Airport.
The conversations leading up to the crash appeared routine.
A controller asked the pilot of the helicopter, designated PAT-25, if he saw the passenger jet, referred to as CRJ.
“PAT-25, do you have the CRJ in sight?” asked the controller.
The controller then tells the chopper how to avoid the jet.
“PAT-25, pass behind the CRJ,” said the controller.
It appears the pilot of the helicopter never responded.
The dispatcher tells the tower what happened and where.
“Crash, crash, crash, this is an alert three. Crash, crash, crash, this is an alert three… It is off the approach into runway 33. Approach into runway 33. Helicopter crash.”
7NEWS has learned one air traffic controller was responsible for coordinating both helicopter traffic as well as arriving and departing planes.
A job normally assigned to two people, expect during breaks or nights, according to a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) report obtained by the Associated Press.
The airspace in and around Washington D.C. is among the most crowded and restricted in the world, but new Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy insists it’s safe.
“We are gonna wait for all the information to come in from this vantage point, but, to back up what the president said, what I’ve seen so far, do I think this was preventable? Absolutely,” said Duffy.
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