An Army Black Hawk helicopter was flying too high when it crashed into an American Airlines jet near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Washington, DC, last week, the National Transportation Safety Board confirmed Tuesday.
Data from air traffic control radar showed the military chopper was flying at 300 feet on the air traffic control display at the time of the fiery Jan. 29 crash, according to the NTSB.
The maximum altitude for helicopters in the area — which is also a flight path for jets going into and out of Reagan — is 200 feet.
The radar data are rounded to the nearest 100 feet, the NTSB said — meaning the helicopter could have been at anywhere between 251 feet and 349 feet of elevation.
The passenger plane was flying at 325 feet when the crash occured — and pilots tried to pull up to avoid the collision at the last moment, according to data from the Bombardier CRJ700’s black box.
The plane had been cleared to land at DCA.
The chopper, which was carrying three soldiers, was conducting a training mission to requalify the pilots for future flights in the area — something they’d done several times before, according to deputy director of aviation for the Army Col. Mark Ott.
Officials, in coordination with the Naval Sea Systems Command supervisor of salvage and diving, have recovered most of the plane from the frigid Potomac River, according to the NTSB.
The wreckage will be moved to a secure location for investigation, officials said.
The Black Hawk is expected to be removed from the water later this week. The NTSB said it cannot confirm the exact altitude or details of the helicopter until it is removed and examined.
The collision, which claimed 67 lives, is the deadliest commercial crash in the US in more than two decades.
Of the deceased, 60 were passengers on the plane and four were flight crew.
