Black Hawk helicopter’s altimeter may have been off, pilots may have missed some calls from control tower

More than two weeks after the collision, investigators are continuing to examine the wreckage and flight data from both aircraft to reconstruct the events leading to the crash.

Washington, DC (CNN) — A preliminary analysis of the flight data and voice recorder on board a Black Hawk helicopter leading up to the collision with a commercial flight over Washington, DC, on January 29, indicated the helicopter’s altimeter may have been inaccurate and the pilots may not have heard some calls from the Reagan National Airport control tower, officials said.

The new data indicate the pilot and her instructor read out two different altitudes shortly before the crash, National Transportation Safety Board chair Jennifer Homendy told reporters at a briefing Friday.

The radio altimeter on board the Black Hawk at the time of the deadly midair collision read 278 feet, Homendy said. That altimeter uses a radio beam to show the helicopter’s altitude above ground level, but it may not have been what the pilots of the helicopter were referencing at the time of the crash, Homendy noted.

The newly revealed data suggests the Army helicopter crew may not have realized they were flying higher than they were supposed to be when the aircraft collided with American Airlines Flight 5342 more than two weeks ago, killing all 67 people aboard both aircraft. The Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk, based at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, was flying a training mission in a dedicated helicopter route where it was not allowed to fly above 200 feet, according to a published FAA chart.

“What we don’t want to do is release radio altitude data so that people would blame the Black Hawk crew,” Homendy told CNN. “We need to know what they were seeing, and we can’t know that right now with the data we have, but we will get it.”

Homendy cautioned the information is preliminary and there are “inconsistencies” in the data. “It might not have been what the Black Hawk crew was seeing,” Homendy told CNN Friday. Homendy said the agency is trying to verify all the components of the helicopter.

“We are seeing conflicting information in the data, which is why we aren’t releasing altitude for the Black Hawk’s entire route,” Homendy said.

Determining the Black Hawk’s precise altitude at the time of the collision is seen as a crucial step in understanding how two aircraft collided under clear skies over some of the country’s most tightly controlled airspace.

Prior to the collision, the instructor pilot on board and the pilot flying the helicopter read out two different altitudes, and investigators are trying to determine why, Homendy said.

The last radio altitude recorded for the regional jet was 313 feet, two seconds before the collision, according to Homendy.

One second before impact, the regional jet began to increase its pitch, or the up and down movement of a plane’s nose, reaching about nine degrees nose up at the time of collision, Homendy said, explaining the pilots on the regional jet saw something was about to happen before the collision.

Investigators are looking into the systems to account for the discrepancy, she added, but it will “take a lot of work.”

After comparing voice recordings from the control tower and the Black Hawk, investigators believe the helicopter pilots may not have heard some of the instructions from the tower. In particular, before the collision, the tower told the helicopter to pass behind the commuter jet. But in the audio from the helicopter’s voice recorder, the instruction was not heard, possibly because the pilots had keyed their microphone to reach the tower at the same time.

Investigators continue examining key evidence

More than two weeks after the collision, investigators are continuing to examine the wreckage and flight data from both aircraft to reconstruct the events leading to the crash.

The cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder from both aircraft are currently being examined in the NTSB laboratories.

The black box voice recorder from the Black Hawk helicopter was recovered on January 31 with no signs of exterior damage. The helicopter had a combined cockpit voice recorder and digital flight data recorder.

The cockpit voice recorder of the American Airlines regional jet had sustained water intrusion, the NTSB previously reported. It was recovered on January 30 and then soaked overnight in ionized water, then put in a vacuum oven to extract moisture. The plane’s flight data recorder was found in “good condition,” according to lead investigator Todd Inman.

The NTSB also believes the helicopter crew was “likely” wearing night vision goggles while performing a check ride, or a practical exam. The Army does three types of check rides: instrument, annual and night vision goggles. This ride was a combined annual and night vision goggle check ride.

Homendy also addressed the Black Hawk helicopter’s equipment for tracking air traffic and the speculation surrounding it, as lawmakers gave mixed signals on whether the helicopter had it in the first place.

Civilian and military aircraft use a technology called automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast (ADS-B), which helps an aircraft broadcast its location, altitude, and other key factors while monitoring other aircraft around it. Homendy confirmed the helicopter had the necessary equipment and was capable of transmitting, but investigators are still unclear why it was not transmitting.

The analysis comes about a week after the NTSB, along with the Naval Sea Systems Command Supervisor of Salvage and Diving, lifted much of the Black Hawk and other large portions of wreckage from the river.

Homendy said the agency has completed its work at the scene of the crash and is continuing its analysis of the physical evidence. The NTSB is also conducting a visibility study, which will laser scan models of the cockpits of both aircraft, which could help aid investigators with what pilots on the Black Hawk could see.

“I am 100% confident that we will get to the bottom of this,” Homendy said.

A preliminary report on the crash is expected to be released by the end of the month. The NTSB has completed the on-scene phase of the investigation, and the board will now focus on fact-finding, Homendy said.

This story has been updated with additional information.

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