The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the National Transportation Safety Board have opened an investigation into the incident that took place on 1 May in the skies over the US capital. Two passenger flights – Delta Air Lines from Orlando and Republic Airways from Boston – were forced to cancel their landing at Ronald Reagan National Airport due to the proximity of a Black Hawk military helicopter, which was reportedly heading to the Pentagon. This was reported by Reuters.
The incident took place less than three months after the tragic collision of a Black Hawk helicopter with an American Airlines plane at the same airport, which killed all 67 people on board.
The FAA confirmed that the helicopter, performing a standard landing procedure, was directed by Pentagon air traffic control to make a U-turn over the helipad. However, there were suspicions that the helicopter’s route did not comply with the rules agreed with the FAA and was too “scenic” – i.e. not straight, which could have posed a threat to civil aviation.
Senator Ted Cruz sharply criticised the army’s actions, accusing it of endangering the lives of passengers and urged the FAA to “take control of the national airspace”. He was supported by Transport Minister Sean Duffy, who said: “No more VIP helicopter rides – let them use Uber.”
Delta Airlines assured that 97 passengers and 5 crew members were on board and that safety remains their highest priority. The Pentagon has not commented on the incident, but sources say that the Black Hawk flight was part of an evacuation exercise.
Democratic Senator Maria Cantwell called the situation “outrageous” and demanded that the FAA and the Pentagon urgently review security policies regarding flights in the airspace over the capital.
