(NewsNation) — Investigators with the National Transport Safety Board are looking at “conflicting information” about the altitude of a Black Hawk military helicopter that collided with an American Airlines passenger jet on Jan. 29 in Washington D.C., killing 67 people.
In the weeks since the crash, the NTSB has been analyzing flight data and damage to determine the cause of the crash.
NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy said Friday that the Black Hawk crew was likely wearing night vision goggles. If they were removed the crew would be required to discuss “going unaided.”
The Black Hawk was at a radio altitude of 278 feet at the time of the crash, Homendy said, adding it’s unclear if the crew was seeing that altitude on its barometric altimeters in the helicopter cockpit.
“We are seeing conflicting information in the data, which is why we aren’t releasing altitude for the Black Hawk’s entire route,” she said.
She added the NTSB is still investigating if the altitude reading in the Black Hawk cockpit was inaccurate.
“We will have an answer to what altitude the pilot saw on their pages as they were flying,” said Sean Payne, NTSB Vehicle Division Branch Chief.
In what was the deadliest aircraft collision in nearly two decades, the helicopter was performing a “check ride,” otherwise known as a practical test to become a pilot.
The NTSB will conduct a visibility study with a laser scan of a matching Black Hawk to look at seating positions, heights and whether night vision goggles would have obstructed the pilots’ view, Homendy said.
All 67 victims of the deadly crash have been identified, and debris from the two aircraft has been recovered from the Potomac River.
The wreckage will be moved to a secure location in the next week, Homendy said.
“We’re only a couple weeks out and we have a lot of work to do,” Homendy said.
