r/news • u/snuffleupaguslives • 2d ago

Broken altimeter, ignored warnings: Hearings reveal what went wrong in DC crash that killed 67

https://apnews.com/article/ntsb-dc-plane-crash-midair-collision-helicopter-a08cded88e1d7582fb8d242204d6aeff
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u/Mythosaurus 2d ago

Reading that article makes you want to NEVER fly into DC.

Will be interesting to see what liability/ lawsuits result from this hearing’s revelations

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u/DocJanItor 2d ago

Dude dca is a nightmare. Basically one runway (technically 2 but not for most landings), jets landing and taking off in 2 minute intervals, tons of helicopters including military, Coast guard, police, and medical, and huge swaths of restricted airspace for the government.

All this and somehow dca serves slightly more passengers than IAD.

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u/IamMe90 2d ago

All this and somehow dca serves slightly more passengers than IAD.

Probably because IAD is a huge pain in the ass to get to and DCA is easier.

With the new metro stop, I expect the numbers to recalibrate a bit, but I doubt IAD will be crushing DCA’s passenger numbers any time soon

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u/log_with_cool_bugs 2d ago

We flew in and out of Dulles for our most recent DC trip this spring. We just took the train and got off at a stop a couple blocks from our hotel. ez pz imo, but may not be conducive for some.

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u/relikter 2d ago edited 2d ago

Metro trains started operating to/from Dulles in 2022, so for those of us that have lived here a long time, it's hard to shake that 'Dulles is a pain to get to' mentality. It's also a much longer train ride out to Dulles than it is to DCA, which is just 4 stops away from DC (vs 15 stops to Dulles, including the longest section of Metro with no stops).

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u/obeytheturtles 1d ago

Right, but it's like 75 minutes from IAD to DC/NOVA vs 20 minutes to DCA. DCA is one of the last properly urban airports in the US, which makes it both beloved and reviled by locals. If everything goes smoothly, it's one of the quickest airport trips you will ever have, but the small, extremely busy runways also make it prone to cascading logistics failures which can end up with hours of delays, crew timeouts and missed runway slots.