Washington, DC, Plane Crash: Everything We Know So Far
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Summary
The US is scrambling to respond to a major air crash, in which a military helicopter and a passenger aeroplane collided and crashed into the Potomac River in Washington, DC, on 2 February, killing at least 19 people.
So far, human error is thought to have played a significant role, raising questions about the US’s chronic shortage of pilots and air traffic controllers; it also highlights the need for greater co-ordination between military and civilian aviation.
President Donald Trump has placed blame on both the Federal Aviation Administration’s diversity programmes and the helicopter’s pilots, although he has provided no hard evidence to support this.
Authorities are also said to be looking into the possibility of fatigue caused by overwork, which has been a consistent allegation in the aviation industry in recent years.
The last time there was a deadly air crash in the US was in 2009.