The National Transportation Safety Board reports a communication breakdown between Marine One and a commercial jet near Reagan National Airport.
The National Transportation Safety Board released a preliminary report detailing a loss-of-separation incident between Marine One and a commercial jet near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport on August 4. The incident occurred because air traffic controllers failed to receive the standard three-minute warning call from the helicopter carrying President Trump. While the helicopter made the calls, the tower recordings showed that the controllers did not hear them due to a lack of line-of-sight radio coverage between the White House and the airport. FAA technicians subsequently moved the radios to the top of the airport control tower to resolve the issue. The two aircraft were approximately 0.82 nautical miles apart laterally and 700 feet apart vertically at their closest point. Neither aircraft was damaged, and President Trump was never in danger. The NTSB investigation remains ongoing as officials work to confirm the exact closest distance between the aircraft.