The scope being used by the controller working both the American Eagle flight and Army Blackhawk helicopter that collided Thursday in Washington, D.C. showed the helicopter about 125 feet lower than the CRJ700 it met over the Potomac River. At a press briefing on Saturday, NTSB member Todd Inman said the flight data recorder and ADS-B data put the regional jet at 325 feet AGL at the point of impact, plus or minus 25 feet while the controller’s console showed the helicopter at 200 feet, the ceiling of the flight corridor it was flying at the time. Inman said the discrepancy would likely be reconciled Sunday when results of FDR analysis from the Blackhawk are complete but he did note that radar altitude displays have less fidelity than the recorders.
He also said there were five controllers in the Reagan National tower at the time of the crash, which he said was normal even though it wasn’t a full complement. Inman told reporters the CVR recorded a “verbal reaction” to the impending collision and the FDR indicated the plane pitched up slightly just before impact. About a second before the collision a flight deck alarm of “traffic, traffic, traffic” was recorded.
Meanwhile the Army identified Capt. Rebecca Lobach, 26, as the pilot flying. She was joined up front by Chief Warrant Officer 2 Andrew Loyd Eves, 39 and crew chief Staff Sgt. Ryan Austin O’Hara, 28. Lobach’s name was released Saturday, a day after the identities of the others was made public. She had 450 hours total time and was certified as a pilot-in-command on the Blackhawk. “We are devastated by the loss of our beloved Rebecca. She was a bright star in all our lives,” the family said in a statement. “She was kind, generous, brilliant, funny, ambitious and strong. No one dreamed bigger or worked harder to achieve her goals.”
