Blackhawk Helicopter and American Airlines Commuter Jet Collide Near Reagan Airport (DCA)

Some would not like it, but it is a few powerful folk in Congress that have self-centeredly used threats of funding cut-offs forced local authorities to keep Reagan open.

Is aircraft altitude still determined by air pressure? If yes, on take off, altitude instrument is adjusted to show the known altitude of the airport. But changes in air pressure as they fly through high and low pressure areas can cause those numbers to be inaccurate.

Probably inadequate instrumentation when clearances need to be precise.

When you enter the DCA area, ATC gives the pilot the current altimeter setting, so everyone flying in the area has their’s set to the same barometric pressure.

I believe the standard analog altimeters are good for +/- 75 ft. That’s not much margin for error when there is only 200 to 300 foot vertical separation between the aircraft even when everyone is doing everything correctly.

intercst

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