The UH-60 Black Hawk, regarded as the backbone of U.S. Army aviation, was the military helicopter that crashed into a regional plane close to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, killing all 67 persons on board.
The Army claims to have depended on the helicopter for every significant mission worldwide for more than 40 years. It is an autility tactical transport aircraft that is employed for everything from air assault to relief efforts.
According to Timothy A. Loranger, an aviation lawyer and former aircraft mechanic, the aircraft, which was first deployed in the Army in 1979, is widely regarded as safe and has a solid reputation for dependability and survival in both combat and transport operations.
Produced by Sikorsky, a division of the massive aerospace and defense corporation Lockheed-Martin, the business claims to have produced over 5,000 of the helicopters for 36 nations.
According to the Army, the plane will play a significant role in its fleet during the next thirty years.
According to the Army, the Black Hawk that struck American Eagle Flight 5342 was on a training mission and belonged to Bravo Company, 12th Aviation Battalion, based at Davison Army Airfield in Fort Belvoir, Virginia.
The three troops on board the plane, including an instructor pilot with over 1,000 flight hours, were characterized by military officials as a highly skilled crew.
The training mission, according to the officials, was a standard yearly assessment of the pilot’s night flying proficiency. According to officials, the crew was fully aware of the route and the regulations governing the airspace surrounding the airport.
The National Transportation Safety Board is looking into the collision’s cause, which is still unknown.
“Video of the collision appeared to show that the helicopter did not appear to change course, speed, or altitude prior to the crash, indicating that it may not have known the passenger jet was in its path,” retired Lt. Colonel Darin Gaub told MSNBC.
He also mentioned that there were fewer crew chiefs on the training voyage than usual to look for possible threats in the skies. These missions usually have three, but Wednesday’s only had one, he said.
In his own words, “That’s a fact,” It might matter in the future. It might not. However, it does make it harder for crew members to spot an aircraft flying at night.
All nine of the soldiers on board were killed when two Black Hawk helicopters from Fort Campbell, Kentucky, collided during a training exercise over two years ago.
The Army grounded all aircraft save those on vital tasks as a result of that tragedy and another deadly collision involving two Apache helicopters in Alaska.
According to Army Chief of Staff James McConville, the standdown was required to make sure the service was taking all reasonable precautions against mishaps.
Military presented an analysis of deadly Black Hawk helicopter incidents.Following the Kentucky disaster, it was discovered that 60 people had died in training-related mishaps in the previous ten years.
Although that figure might seem high, the review found that Black Hawks are engaged in significantly fewer fatal accidents than other helicopters, such as the AH-64 Apache and CH-47 Chinook, and they also account for the fewest fatal incidents in relation to hours flown in the Army’s fleet.