The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is investigating an air safety incident involving President Donald Trump’s Marine One helicopter and a commercial plane. The incident occurred on Tuesday when the Marine One helicopter took off from the Ellipse near the White House and came close to an Envoy Air regional jet that was departing from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.
Air Safety Concerns
The FAA has imposed heavy restrictions on helicopters operating near the airport after a collision last year between a US Army Blackhawk helicopter and an American Airlines regional jet, killing all 67 people on board. The restrictions require commercial flights to be halted when the President’s helicopter is taking off or landing.
However, on Tuesday, commercial flights at the Reagan National Airport were not halted as required, according to two sources. The Marine One helicopter pilots told air traffic control that they were preparing to take off, but the controller did not respond. The pilots then departed on their planned route, and the controller warned them about the regional jet that was already taking off.
The incident has raised concerns about air safety and the need for better communication between air traffic control and pilots. The FAA is investigating the incident to determine what happened and how to prevent similar incidents in the future.
Original reporting: KTVZ (Central Oregon) — read the source article.
