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Stressed US aviation system draws focus as investigators search for clues in deadly crash
Political pressure mounts in Washington to identify what failed, leading to deadliest American air disaster in decades
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Investigators and aviation experts worked overtime on Friday searching for clues to this week’s deadly mid-air collision between a commercial jet and a military helicopter over Washington as attention focused on an increasingly stressed US aviation system, human error and concern the pilots involved may not have seen each other’s aircraft.
Political pressure in the nation’s capital was building to identify what failed leading to the deadliest US air disaster in over two decades.
US passenger traffic has exploded following the coronavirus pandemic even as the government failed to address the long hours, staff shortages and rising number of close calls hitting the air traffic control system, analysts said.
Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, where the jet was due to land, has the nation’s busiest runway and is the main gateway for members of Congress, which will almost certainly add urgency to the inevitable oversight hearings and finger pointing.
Among the 67 reported dead included two Chinese nationals, two young American figure skating stars, two Russian skating coaches and citizens from the Philippines and Germany.
The early debates for aviation experts and millions of ordinary passengers alike have centred on one question: Is it safe to fly in the US?
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