US agency recommends restrictions on helicopters after Washington mid-air collision
The National Transportation Safety Board on Tuesday, March 11, made an urgent safety recommendation to prevent helicopters from flying near Washington Reagan National Airport when two lesser-used runways are operational, a move that followed a mid-air collision in January that killed 67 people.
The NTSB justified its recommendation because of "risk of mid-air collisions between helicopters," according to a letter to the Federal Aviation Administration first reported by Reuters. It also is recommending that the FAA create an alternate route that can be used by helicopters when the two secondary runways at Reagan National are in use.
In the aftermath of the Jan. 29 crash between an American Airlines passenger jet and a Black Hawk military helicopter over the Potomac River in Washington, D.C., the FAA temporarily barred most helicopters near the airport — located in Arlington, Virginia — until it could review the NTSB's initial findings.
REUTERS / NTSB
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