Families of passengers killed in January midair collision say Army isn’t taking responsibility, according to new letter
The families of victims killed in the American Airlines Flight 5342 midair collision say they are “deeply dismayed” by the Army’s recent handling of the investigation.
Roberto Marquez from Dallas, Texas, sets up a makeshift memorial on January 31 for the victims of the deadly midair collision near Reagan National Airport in Arlington, Virginia. (Photo credit: Roberto Schmidt/AFP/Getty Images via CNN Newsource)
Washington (CNN) — The families of the victims of American Airlines Flight 5342 say they are “deeply dismayed” at the Army’s recent actions regarding the ongoing investigation into the midair collision in January that killed 67 people near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.
A new letter to the Secretary of the Army, signed by family members of the passengers who died when the regional jet and Black Hawk helicopter collided, called out the Army’s refusal to engage with families, despite other parties involved in the accident being willing to cooperate.
“The Army’s approach contrasts sharply with the more collaborative stance taken by other organizations involved in this incident and raises serious questions about its commitment to transparency and accountability,” the letter read. “Our concerns were compounded when the Army withheld its unclassified ADS-B policy memo from Congress, only releasing it under threat of subpoena.”
ADS-B is equipment installed in aircraft to detect and avoid potential collisions; however, in the January accident, the NTSB found it was not transmitting in the Army helicopter.
A passenger jet and a Blackhawk helicopter collided in midair on approach to Reagan National Airport on the evening of Jan. 29.
The Army has been criticized by lawmakers following the incident, including both Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Sen. Ted Cruz and Ranking Member Maria Cantwell.
In April, Cruz said, “If another Black Hawk helicopter strikes another passenger jet and murders 67 people because the Army refused to change its policy of turning off ADS-B Out and rather than act proactively to protect people’s lives - the Army chose to protect its bureaucratic a** - those deaths will be on the Army’s hands.”
The Army Inspector General later declined to open an independent audit into the crash, despite bipartisan support, as noted in the letter.
“Given that this is the deadliest incident involving U.S. civilian casualties caused by the military in modern history, the Army has a heightened responsibility to ensure full public transparency and urgent implementation of meaningful safety reforms,” the letter said. “The scale of this tragedy demands complete cooperation and accountability from all parties involved—including the U.S. Army.”
The families are requesting the Army appoint a family liaison, schedule a meeting with them and support the audits requested by Congress.
CNN has reached out to the Pentagon for comment.
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