Opinion : Letter to the Editor: Living in the present, remembering the past – XI

Editor:

If you have read some of my articles you know I have been an aviator for 60 years more or less; retiring a few years ago when I donated my Homebuilt RV-7A. During that time there were many ups and downs (pun intended). There were furloughs that lasted years, even so I accumulated some 18,000 plus or minus flight hours. So other jobs and career choices were necessary.

Some background concerning the midair that occurred at DCA, Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. It appears to me that an American RJ Jet aircraft on final approach to Runway 33 was hit by an Army Sikorsky UH-60 Helicopter. (Black Hawk is a four-blade, twin-engine, medium-lift utility military helicopter ) Cable channel news has been covering this tragic accident almost 24/7. Various so called experts have attempted to inform. I hope to give some information to you readers that may not have been covered in the various newscasts. During the period of Ronald Reagan's Presidency, the Air Traffic Controllers union went on strike. President Reagan ordered them back to work or he would terminate their employment. I was furloughed from TWA (Trans World Airlines) at the time. I was a Flight Engineer on Boeing 727 aircraft. Air traffic route control centers and local airport towers we severely shorthanded; procedures had to be changed to accommodate the manpower shortage. One was to offer employment to furloughed airline pilots, another was to change some IFR rules (Instrument Flight Rules). One of these measures was to institute tower to tower IFR flight below Flight level 180 - eighteen thousand feet. So instead of Air Route Traffic Control (ATC) IFR aircraft were given IFR clearances from CID (Cedar Rapids) tower to a destination tower or many enroute tower until destination. I applied for an opening at the CID tower - Flight Data Aid. When qualified I would give stage three, tower to tower enroute clearances, ATIS reports (airport weather - temperature, altimeter setting, wind speed and direction, active runway, turbulence advisories, icing conditions, and NOTAMS --- Notices to Airmen, taxi closures or obstructions.) So I got to experience the other side of the microphone. It did not take long for me to realize, I did not have the aptitude to be a fully trained controller. However, I did learn many Air Traffic rules, restrictions, and proper language to use. To Witt: Normal procedure, ATC gives a "handoff" to Airport terminal Radar. The Terminal controller will give altitude and or heading to the final approach course - a command of "cleared for the approach" is given and a handoff is given to the Local Controller (tower operator), followed by a 'Cleared to Land" command. All these commands mean there is no other traffic on radar or visual that would jeopardize safety. In the DCA case the AA RJ was given a cleared to land command for Runway 33. Coming from the South means the RJ followed the Potomac River to a final approach. Information differs as the altitude where the midair occurred. The Radar sweep has the RJ at a different altitude than the flight recorder on the helio. That can be explained as the terminal radar antenna makes a 360 degree sweep every 3-4 seconds or more - so what the radar operator sees is a momentary snapshot of the RJ. There is discussion as to whether the helo pilot in command was using night vision goggles. That can be determined by examining the wreckage. I have never used them, but on one of my flights as Captain on The DC-9 I had an FAA inspector on board giving us a route check - and he was also an Air National Guard pilot on C-141 aircraft. In conversation he told us that they used these goggles at night flying at only 100 feet off the ground - good grief. One pilot had the goggles, the other cross checked the instruments and a visual outside. Do not know the Army procedure. Something went amiss either the helio was at the wrong altitude under the final approach path to RW 33 or the Local missed the conflict. Whatever, The midair occurred and many lives were lost. It will take the accident investigators months of examination to determine the probable cause. It looks to me that 1. The helio should not have been in that location proper altitude or no. 2. The helicopter pilot(S) should have visually seen the conflict and taken evasive action; then all lived and a "near miss" would have been reported to proper authority.

While I was still a line pilot for TWA a new device was installed - TCAS - a traffic alert system. The indicator was on the instrument panel; when an aircraft came close to our path and altitude It would give "Traffic, Traffic" alert. On the instrument a blip would appear, usually the blip would be at the 9 to 3 o'clock position. If a conflict was detected it would give a "climb, climb or descend, descend" command. Of course that was 24 plus years ago so no doubt the TCAS system is much better then when I was flying airliners. A question would be was the TCAS operational on the RJ. If so it should have given ample warning for the RJ to institute a "missed approach", commonly called a "go-around". All saved.

One other note: The aircraft I built had the required nav lights, red on one wing, green on the other with a white tail light on the horizontal Stabilizer below the vertical stabilizer; also I had strobe lights, a high intensity white flash seconds apart. Every airliner I flew had this system with an addition of a rotating beacon on the underside of the fuselage; a high intensity red light. I am sure the RJ (regional jet) had the same system. I cannot understand how the helio crew did not seet the RJ at least a mile from their position and make corrective action then! As an aside the nav light system I installed was not cheap, but money may be easier to earn than the pain and maybe death of a collision. In addition I installed the system and wiring to the controller. But hooked the wires opposite to required; shorted the controller out so ship to the manufacture, Whelan, for repair. Of course it was not a manufactured error so I had to pay for the shipping and repair. Education no matter how gained is costly. Preserve, adapt, overcome.

Sorry for the length of the article, but I hope you who have no aviation experience have a perspective on what did happen and what should have happened.

https://www.fly.faa.gov/Information/east/zdc/dca/00443AD.PDF DCA airport diagram

Regards and blessings,

John Stiegelmeyer Capt. TWA (Ret)