Well none of them appear to have been looking out the window at the time, which is puzzling to me. They should have had their head on a swivel when transiting a busy A/C corridor, yet they flew along without any attempt at avoidance. The ATC is also a puzzle for their lack of control when it had to be obvious there was a danger of collision. But the lack of cockpit awareness is definitely the bigger question mark.
I think this question (which is being asked almost everywhere) is a red herring. Someone wants us to focus on only that question.
The real question is - why was the helicopter flying at double the altitude they were allowed to fly, and why were they 1/2 mile off-course?
The helicopters (any of them) are not allowed to fly above 200 feet in that area so they are not in the path of fixed-wing aircraft taking off or landing. There is also a route they have to take that helps keep them safe. These and other helicopters fly the same route multiple times every day. Why was this helicopter doing something different? Why were they flying at 400' - the exact altitude as the plane upon impact?
Also - just because it pisses me off that so many keep saying this (not you but X users and some on here) - YES - they have to train there. If something happens in the US and POTUS, SECDEF, or some other leader has to be evacuated to provide continuity of government, I for one want the pilots to be able to get them from point A to B safely, as fast as possible, and be able to do it from muscle memory. That to me is non-negotiable.
Well none of them appear to have been looking out the window at the time, which is puzzling to me. They should have had their head on a swivel when transiting a busy A/C corridor, yet they flew along without any attempt at avoidance. The ATC is also a puzzle for their lack of control when it had to be obvious there was a danger of collision. But the lack of cockpit awareness is definitely the bigger question mark.
They were conducting training wearing night vision devices.
Military pilots are trained to constantly sweep side to side while wearing night vision - specifically because of the peripheral vision issues.
thanks, so why did not they see the plane? just asking
Interesting article...
Specifically about the air traffic controller's failure to tell the helo which direction to look. ('Above you, and to your left', etc)
https://www.independentsentinel.com/fmr-air-traffic-controller-dc-crash-was-100-controllers-fault/
I think this question (which is being asked almost everywhere) is a red herring. Someone wants us to focus on only that question.
The real question is - why was the helicopter flying at double the altitude they were allowed to fly, and why were they 1/2 mile off-course?
The helicopters (any of them) are not allowed to fly above 200 feet in that area so they are not in the path of fixed-wing aircraft taking off or landing. There is also a route they have to take that helps keep them safe. These and other helicopters fly the same route multiple times every day. Why was this helicopter doing something different? Why were they flying at 400' - the exact altitude as the plane upon impact?
Also - just because it pisses me off that so many keep saying this (not you but X users and some on here) - YES - they have to train there. If something happens in the US and POTUS, SECDEF, or some other leader has to be evacuated to provide continuity of government, I for one want the pilots to be able to get them from point A to B safely, as fast as possible, and be able to do it from muscle memory. That to me is non-negotiable.