Could the DCA Crash Have Been Prevented? | Ask the Captain

Описание: So many of you have been asking about the recent helicopter–regional jet crash near Washington DC’s Reagan National Airport (DCA), the 15,000 “close calls” headline, and whether our airspace system is actually safe.

In this episode of Ask the Captain, Captain Steeeve breaks down the DCA accident from a pilot’s perspective: how fear after 9/11 led to tight, conflict-prone arrival and departure corridors, why a helicopter route ever crossed short final in the first place, and whether that design was “madness” or just bad policy finally catching up with us.

We dig into:
• Who really approves routes that intersect like this — and why Congress bears a lot of responsibility
• The difference between close calls and near misses and what the “15,000” number really means
• Why so many NTSB safety recommendations sit unanswered, and what the proposed ROTOR Act would change
• How night vision goggles, altimeter settings, and overloaded controllers contributed to this tragedy
• Why TCAS, ADS-B, and using VHF instead of UHF around civilian airports are such big deals for safety

Most importantly, we talk about what’s changing now — and how your phone call to Congress can help make sure something like this never happens again.

0:00 – Airplanes in the news & today’s DCA crash Q&A
0:32 – Did DCA’s helicopter route design border on “madness”?
1:40 – How post-9/11 fear squeezed DCA into a tight, risky corridor
2:43 – “15,000 close calls”: what that number really means
3:46 – NTSB vs FAA: Why safety recommendations go unanswered
5:14 – Systemic failure? Why route design mattered more than one crew
6:21 – Altimeter setting vs bad procedures: blaming the wrong thing
7:10 – Radar vs barometric altimeters & night-vision training context
8:19 – Could the altimeter issue have been caught earlier? Human factors
9:05 – How night vision goggles affect pilots’ vision and depth perception
10:07 – Why NVG training near busy finals is such a bad idea
10:46 – TCAS & ADS-B: why every military aircraft near civilians should have them
11:31 – UHF vs VHF: giving airline pilots vital situational awareness
12:40 – Overloaded ATC, experience gaps, and missing critical calls
14:20 – Why the helicopter didn’t just hover and let the jet pass
15:00 – Route changed after the crash: does that prove it was unsafe?
16:05 – Aviation transparency, lessons written in blood & final reassurance

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Disclaimer: Captain Steeeve is not a spokesperson for any airline or aviation authority. The opinions expressed in this video are solely his own and are based on his experience as a professional pilot. This analysis is for informational and educational purposes only and should not be interpreted as an official statement from any airline, regulatory agency, or aviation organization.

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