A recent investigation has uncovered that a series of deadly misjudgments by the pilot of a Black Hawk helicopter led to a catastrophic collision with a passenger plane before plunging into the Potomac River in January, resulting in the loss of 67 lives.
The tragedy, which occurred over two months ago, continues to send shockwaves through the aviation community.
According to the investigation, Captain Rebecca M. Lobach, the 28-year-old pilot, allegedly ignored direct orders to alter the helicopter’s course. Communication failures and missteps are now believed to have played a significant role in the horrific accident that occurred on January 29.
While the investigation initially suggested the helicopter had been flying at an unsafe altitude, causing it to intersect with the flight path of an American Airlines plane landing at Washington D.C.’s Ronald Reagan National Airport, it’s now clear that the series of errors led to a deadly collision with the aircraft, resulting in the tragic death of the pilot and everyone on board.
Black Hawk Crash: Pilot Ignored Warnings Before Fatal Collision That Killed 67, NYT Investigation Reveals
A newly surfaced investigation paints a harrowing picture of the events that led to the fatal collision between a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter and a commercial airliner in January—an accident that claimed the lives of 67 people and continues to send shockwaves through the aviation world.
According to The New York Times, Captain Rebecca M. Lobach, 28, made a series of critical misjudgments both during and prior to the incident. Notably, she reportedly disregarded direct instructions during a routine annual flight evaluation while airborne.
Onboard with Lobach during the tragic flight were Staff Sgt. Ryan Austin O’Hara, also 28, and her flight instructor, Chief Warrant Officer 2 Andrew Loyd Eaves, 39.
Transcripts of cockpit conversations obtained by investigators and reviewed by the Times reveal that air traffic controllers had warned the crew of an approaching passenger jet. Both Lobach and Eaves acknowledged the alert, but the decisions that followed proved catastrophic.
Rather than continuing under controller guidance, one of the military pilots requested to proceed under “visual separation”—a standard aviation protocol that allows pilots to maintain safe distances using their own judgment. Permission was granted. The American Airlines jet, which had departed from Wichita, Kansas, was circling in preparation to land at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport at the time.
However, something went terribly wrong. For reasons still unclear, Captain Lobach failed to maintain visual separation properly. Just 15 seconds after the clearance was given, the helicopter collided with the jet, which was carrying 60 passengers and four crew members. Both aircraft ultimately went down into the Potomac River.
Reports claim that moments before the crash, Warrant Officer Eaves advised Lobach to change course to the left—toward the east riverbank—a maneuver that could have created the space needed to avoid the airliner. Lobach, however, did not comply.
“The Black Hawk was 15 seconds away from crossing paths with the jet. Warrant Officer Eaves then turned his attention to Captain Lobach,” the report says. “He told her he believed air traffic control wanted them to turn left… She did not turn left.”
Whether Lobach failed to notice the proximity of the jet or was unable to maneuver safely in time remains uncertain. Investigators have ruled out medical issues or incapacitation, according to people familiar with the autopsy and performance log reviews.
Captain Lobach, an aviation officer since July 2019, had logged approximately 500 hours of Black Hawk flight time and had earned multiple commendations, including the Army Commendation Medal and the Army Achievement Medal.
Still, the question remains: Why were warnings ignored, and how did multiple layers of aviation safety protocols collapse?
FAA Deputy Administrator Katie Thomson remarked, “Multiple layers of safety precautions failed that night.”
Investigators also uncovered intermittent communication blackouts between the helicopter and air traffic controllers, raising the possibility that key information may not have been received in time.
Brig. Gen. Matthew Braman, Director of Army Aviation, commented, “What we’ll find in the end is there were multiple things that, had any one of them changed, it could have well changed the outcome of that evening.”
The final report from the National Transportation Safety Board is expected early next year and will aim to provide a full accounting of what caused one of the most devastating military aviation accidents in recent history.