A newly released report from The New York Times has shed light on the potential factors contributing to the tragic mid-air collision on January 29th near Reagan National Airport, which claimed the lives of all 67 people aboard a United States Army UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter and a commuter airliner.
According to The New York Times, the pilot of the Black Hawk, Army Capt. Rebecca A. Lobach, reportedly failed to execute a crucial course change shortly before the deadly incident. Lobach was on an evaluation flight under the supervision of her instructor, Chief Warrant Officer 2 Andrew Loyd Eaves, who had instructed her to alter the helicopter’s trajectory. This critical instruction was not followed, the report states.
Furthermore, the investigation suggests that Lobach also did not follow instructions regarding altitude, with the Black Hawk ascending to as high as 400 feet before the collision…