NTSB chair blasts FAA over deadly DC crash: ‘Are you kidding me? 67 people are dead’

The head of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) criticized the Federal Aviation Administration for not “taking ownership” in the deadly Black Hawk helicopter collision with a passenger jet near Washington Reagan National Airport in January.

During a hearing on Wednesday that is set to continue this week, NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy alleged that some FAA tower employees knew there “was a problem” with U.S. Army helicopters flying in close proximity to passenger aircraft near the airport.

Sixty-seven people died on Jan. 29 after a regional American Airlines jet collided with an Army Black Hawk helicopter over Washington, D.C., officials said, the nation’s first major commercial airline crash since 2009.

The Army helicopter was on a training flight at the time of the collision.

“Every sign was there, that there was a safety risk and the tower was telling you that,” Homendy said of the air traffic controllers working at Reagan National Airport (DCA) at the time.

“Yet you know what FAA did, after the accident occurred, you transferred out the air traffic manager, two assistant general managers,” Homendy continued. “You transferred people out instead of taking ownership over the fact that everybody in FAA tower was saying there was a problem.”

According to Homendy, who cited FAA surveillance data, there were over 15,000 close proximity events between helicopters and commercial aircraft at DCA between October 2021 and December 2024.

Keep reading

NTSB Chief Shuts Down NBC Reporter Who Asks Stupid Question About Trump During Briefing on DC Plane Crash 

During a briefing on the DC plane crash by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), a reporter for NBC News asked if Trump was somehow making their investigation more difficult. The NTSB chief stepped forward and shut him down.

This was an embarrassing moment for NBC News. These journalists just can’t help themselves. They are still on a constant quest to blame Trump or make him look bad at any moment, no matter how inappropriate. They really seem to believe that other people share this mental problem with them.

It makes them look foolish, not to mention unprofessional.

The NTSB handled this perfectly.

The Daily Mail reported:

Female NTSB head stuns the press with her unexpected response to Trump’s claim DEI caused the crash

National Transportation Safety Board Chair Jennifery Homendy stunned reporters after being asked several ways if President Donald Trump jumped the gun by blaming the deadly D.C. crash on ‘DEI’ and previous administrations.

Homendy led a press conference on-site at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport Thursday afternoon.

Several of the reporters in the crowd asked her about Trump’s eyebrow-raising assertions that he made standing at the podium earlier Thursday in the White House briefing room.

‘With all due respect, I think the press also likes to state what probable cause is before we get to the probable cause,’ Homendy said. ‘So what I’m going to say is you need to give us time.’

Keep reading

BOOM! NTSB Chair Calls Out Media Hypocrisy on Crash Speculation

The National Transportation Safety Board just gave an update on last night’s midair collision between an Army Black Hawk helicopter and an American Airlines commuter flight. More than 60 individuals are presumed dead, and recovery efforts continue in the Potomac River.

Unsurprisingly, there wasn’t a lot of new information—with one exception: board member J. Todd Inman stated that “no chutes or slides were deployed” subsequent to the crash, indicating that there was no time to deploy emergency evacuation procedures. 

A reporter from NBC, Tom Costello, asked NTSB Chairwoman Jennifer Homendy, “Does it hurt your investigation process to have the president already suggesting possible causes here as you try to keep in mind and begin this investigation?”

Homendy wasn’t having it. “Tom, with all due respect, I think the press also likes to state what probable cause is before we get to the probable cause. So what I’m going to say is you need to give us time.”

Keep reading