Helicopter in Crash Near Washington Was Flying Higher Than Permitted and Outside of Its Flight Path

The Black hawk helicopter in the horrific plane crash Near Washington appears to have been flying higher than approved.

It appears the Army Black Hawk was outside of its flight path when it collided with a commercial passenger jet at Reagan National Airport on Wednesday night.

“Why is it on this day, on that flight, they were [as much as] 150 to 200 feet higher than they knew they should be?”

And why haven’t they identified the pilot of the Blackhawk?

It is the deadliest air disaster in the US since 2001, and the first crash of an American airliner in nearly 15 years.

The Post reports that grave lapses and miscommunications in one of the most crowded and complex patches of sky in the US are likely to blame.

There’s no way the helicopter pilot didn’t see the American Eagle plane. pic.twitter.com/lfUkboih2a

— Not Jerome Powell (@alifarhat79) January 31, 2025

There is absolutely NO WAY the Black Hawk didn’t see the American Airlines plane. They flew right into it. pic.twitter.com/Fco4yVzSXy

— Ian Miles Cheong (@stillgray) January 31, 2025

WATCH: A new clearer video has been released of the collision between a helicopter and passenger plane in Washington D.C.

pic.twitter.com/QjSGHxU3zT

— Election Wizard (@ElectionWiz) January 31, 2025

CBS News: The military Black Hawk helicopter that crashed into a passenger plane near Reagan National Airport Wednesday appears to have been flying above the permitted altitude, publicly available flight data analyzed by CBS News shows.

This data point is one of several key mysteries investigators are exploring as they seek to explain what caused the nation’s worst air disaster in more than a decade, aviation experts said.

“That’s the $64 million question that needs to be answered,” said Greg Feith, a former senior air safety investigator with the National Transportation Safety Board, in an interview with CBS News.

The permitted flight ceiling on the Potomac River near Reagan National Airport is 200 feet – a crucial ceiling for keeping the heavy flow of military helicopters safely clear of the steady commercial aircraft traffic into and out of the nation’s capital.

Data from FlightRadar24, which tracks and records aircraft data for most flights across the U.S., showed the helicopter’s last estimated altitude was about 400 feet when it crashed. The jet’s altitude was about 375 to 400 feet, according to data from FlightAware and FlightRadar24.

They’re military pilots; they’re familiar with the routes,” Feith said. “Why is it on this day, on that flight, they were [as much as] 150 to 200 feet higher than they knew they should be?”

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