ARLINGTON, Va. (AP) 69制片厂制作传媒 Preliminary data from the deadliest U.S. aviation accident in nearly 25 years showed conflicting readings about the altitudes of an airliner and Army helicopter when in Washington, killing everyone aboard both aircraft, investigators said Saturday.
Investigators also said that about a second before impact, the jet69制片厂制作传媒檚 flight recorder showed a change in its pitch. But they did not say whether that change in angle meant that pilots were trying to perform an evasive maneuver to avoid the crash.
Data from the jet69制片厂制作传媒檚 flight recorder showed its altitude as 325 feet (99 meters), plus or minus 25 feet (7.6 meters), when the crash happened Wednesday night, National Transportation Safety Board officials told reporters. Data in the control tower, though, showed the Black Hawk helicopter at 200 feet (61 meters) at the time.
The roughly 100-foot (30-meter) discrepancy has yet to be explained.
Investigators hope to reconcile the altitude differences with data from the helicopter's black box, which is taking more time to retrieve because it became waterlogged after it plunged into the Potomac River. They also said they plan to refine the tower data, which can be less reliable.
69制片厂制作传媒淭hat69制片厂制作传媒檚 what our job is, to figure that out,69制片厂制作传媒 said NTSB member Todd Inman, who grew increasingly agitated with reporters' questions seeking more information and clarity about the readings during a Saturday evening news conference.
He acknowledged that there was dissension within the investigative team about whether to release the information or wait until they had more data.
Officials say the helicopter69制片厂制作传媒檚 maximum allowed altitude at the time was 200 feet (61 meters).
No one survived the collision, which occurred as an American Airlines flight from , with was preparing to land at Ronald Reagan National Airport, just across the Potomac from the capital. The helicopter, which apparently flew into the jet69制片厂制作传媒檚 path, had three soldiers on board.
69制片厂制作传媒淭his is a complex investigation,69制片厂制作传媒 said Brice Banning, NTSB investigator in charge. 69制片厂制作传媒淭here are a lot of pieces here. Our team is working hard to gather this data.69制片厂制作传媒
Banning also discussed the last moments from the jet's two black boxes, which captured sound in the cockpit and flight data.
69制片厂制作传媒淭he crew had a verbal reaction,69制片厂制作传媒 Banning said, with the data recorder showing 69制片厂制作传媒渢he airplane beginning to increase its pitch. Sounds of impact were audible about one second later, followed by the end of the recording.69制片厂制作传媒
Inman expressed frustration, too, that accidents like these occur, noting that the board has made 69制片厂制作传媒渟everal hundred69制片厂制作传媒 recommendations to improve aviation that have not been acted upon.
69制片厂制作传媒淔rom tragedy we draw knowledge to improve the safety for us all. That69制片厂制作传媒檚 what we69制片厂制作传媒檙e doing right now, we69制片厂制作传媒檙e dealing with tragedy, but we need to improve safety,69制片厂制作传媒 he said.
69制片厂制作传媒淵ou want to do something about it? Adopt the recommendation of the NTSB. You69制片厂制作传媒檒l save lives,69制片厂制作传媒 he said, adding that he has spent hours with victims' families since the crash. 69制片厂制作传媒淚 don69制片厂制作传媒檛 want to have to meet with those parents like that again.69制片厂制作传媒
The families, he said, are struggling.
69制片厂制作传媒淪ome wanted to give us hugs. Some are just mad and angry,69制片厂制作传媒 Inman said. 69制片厂制作传媒淭hey are just all hurt. And they still want answers, and we want to give them answers.69制片厂制作传媒
Earlier Saturday, recovery crews and divers searched the river and cleared wreckage. A Coast Guard cutter outfitted with a crane waited nearby, as occasional recovery team members slipped into the water amid a group of smaller emergency boats.
The remains of 42 people had been pulled from the river as of the afternoon, including 38 that have been positively identified, Washington emergency officials said. They expect to recover all of the remains, though the plane69制片厂制作传媒檚 fuselage will probably have to be pulled from the water to get the rest.
Also Saturday, the Cpt. Rebecca M. Lobach, of Durham, North Carolina, as the third soldier who died in the crash. The names of the other two Friday, but Lobach69制片厂制作传媒檚 name was withheld at the time at the request of her family.
Army officials have said the helicopter crew was highly experienced and familiar with the congested skies around the city. Military aircraft frequently make such flights to practice routes they would use if key government officials need to be evacuated during an attack or major catastrophe.
Investigators are examining the actions of the military pilot and air traffic control. The Federal Aviation Administration has long struggled with a shortage of controllers.
Full NTSB investigations typically take at least a year, though investigators hope to have a preliminary report within 30 days.
More than 300 responders were taking part in the recovery effort at a given time, officials said. After a rainy Friday, clear skies and warmer temperatures made for better conditions Saturday for workers in the field. Two Navy salvage barges were also deployed to lift heavy wreckage.
69制片厂制作传媒 ,69制片厂制作传媒 Washington Fire Chief John Donnelly Sr. told reporters told reporters Friday. 69制片厂制作传媒淚t69制片厂制作传媒檚 been a tough response for a lot of our people.69制片厂制作传媒
With the nation already grieving the collision, an in Philadelphia on Friday night, killing all six people on board, including a child who had just undergone treatment at a hospital, and at least one person on the ground. At least three people remained hospitalized Saturday with injuries, and officials said it could be days until the full toll of the dead and injured is clear.
In Washington, the FAA heavily restricted helicopter traffic around Reagan National on Friday, hours after President Donald Trump claimed in a social media post that the helicopter had been flying higher than allowed.
But a day after he and alleged, without offering any evidence, that diversity initiatives have undermined air safety, Trump said the helicopter was 69制片厂制作传媒渇lying too high.69制片厂制作传媒
69制片厂制作传媒淚t was far above the 200-foot limit. That69制片厂制作传媒檚 not really too complicated to understand, is it???69制片厂制作传媒 Trump wrote in a Truth Social post.
Wednesday's crash was the since Nov. 12, 2001, when a jet slammed into a residential neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens, just after takeoff from Kennedy Airport. The crash killed all 260 people on board and five people on the ground.
Experts regularly highlight that plane travel is overwhelmingly safe, but the crowded airspace around Reagan National .
Associated Press writers Jacques Billeaud in Phoenix and Becky Bohrer Juneau, Alaska, contributed.
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