The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) released their notes about the in cockpit communication inside the Blackhawk helicopter. There were clearly many issues going on that night, all leading to tragedy over Washington DC.
NTSB unveiled the black box recordings from the Blackhawk helicopter involved in the fatal Washington, DC collision with a commercial jet—and the findings are stunning. Here’s what the data reveals:
- Altitude Confusion: The helicopter’s altimeter was wildly inaccurate. The pilot read 300 feet, the instructor saw 400, but the actual altitude was 278 feet—well above the 200-foot ceiling. They were flying with faulty data, essentially blind.
- Critical Miscommunication: Air traffic control urgently instructed the chopper to “pass behind the jet,” but the pilots missed it. The mic was keyed at the exact wrong time, drowning out the warning. Seconds later, the crash occurred.
- Desperate Final Moments: The jet’s pilots attempted a last-second climb, pitching the nose up just before impact. It wasn’t enough. The Blackhawk crew, meanwhile, had no idea what was coming until it hit the plane.
- Night Vision Complications: The helicopter pilots were using night vision goggles, but did they obscure the jet’s lights? Experts suggest they may have fixated on the wrong target in DC’s busy airspace.
This wasn’t a single error—it was a devastating chain of failures. Sixty-seven lives were lost. The NTSB promises a preliminary report soon, but the black box data already paints a grim picture: something went catastrophically wrong that night.
This video shares more. It is from @Brian.Murray on YouTube