Alerts From Trump’s Helicopter Went Unheard At Reagan National

Pilots on President Donald Trump’s helicopter twice unsuccessfully tried to alert controllers at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport that his aircraft was about to depart shortly before it flew worryingly close to a passenger jet earlier this month, according to a preliminary report released Thursday.

Trump’s helicopter, known as Marine One when he’s aboard, came within 0.82 miles of the departing passenger plane, the National Transportation Safety Board reported — breaching the 1.5-mile buffer required under federal aviation rules.

Both White House and aviation officials insist the president was never in danger, but the “loss of separation” between the helicopter and an Envoy Air jet marks another episode highlighting safety concerns in the crowded U.S. airspace, particularly around Washington. The incident occurred nearly a year and a half after an Army helicopter and passenger jet collided near Reagan National, killing 67 people in the deadliest U.S. aviation disaster in more than two decades.

Thursday’s preliminary report is not intended to address root causes of the Marine One incident — a determination the NTSB will make in a final report typically released within a year.

According to a summary of events in the NTSB report, the controller overseeing helicopter traffic — who was departing their shift at the airport tower — informed the incoming controller Aug. 4 that a VIP movement was expected soon. That indicates that at least one controller was aware the president was about to be airborne.

Twenty minutes later, Marine One contacted the airport helicopter controller about the impending movement, but the transmission was “not received at all,” according to the report

The pilots radioed Washington control again less than a minute later to reiterate the alert and confirm their departure was imminent. However, that second transmission was “unintelligible” through the controller’s frequency, NTSB said, noting the transmission “was broken and unreadable.”

The Marine One pilots also attempted another way to reach controllers — through the helicopter facility at nearby Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling, “which was also unsuccessful,” NTSB said. Controllers at the airport continued to proceed with directing commercial air traffic, including the Envoy Air jet. Roughly three minutes later, that jet took off.

The jet’s audible traffic advisory alert went off in the cockpit, NTSB said.

‘Some telecom issues’

Marine One told controllers that the helicopter was proceeding as they previously briefed, to which the helicopter controller responded, "okay, no three minutes roger, proceed as requested," the report said. Meanwhile, another airport controller advised an incoming flight behind the Envoy jet to go around.

NTSB also said there was insufficient line of sight — or an unobstructed signal path — to ensure clear and consistent transmission between the communications site and the Ellipse, where Marine One was temporarily operating during ongoing White House construction.

Under Federal Aviation Administration rules, aircraft must maintain at least 1.5 miles of horizontal spacing and 500 feet of vertical separation around airports. The FAA has said there was a “momentary” loss of separation between the two aircraft, confirmed by the report, which says that “the closest proximity” between the helicopter and Envoy jet was “about .82 miles apart laterally and about 700 feet vertically.”

Marine One operators have an understanding with the FAA, outlined in a 2013 agreement, to give air traffic controllers a “three-minute alert” before takeoff operations. According to air traffic control communications captured online, air traffic controllers at Reagan National didn’t suspend flights there — as required for safety reasons — despite Marine One pilots radioing their intended departure.

Following the incident, the FAA said it convened a “safety review panel” and has met with the White House helicopter unit about the incident. The group will “enhance coordination on three minute lift notification and boost signal frequencies,” an agency spokesperson said Aug. 11.

"We've found at a staff level between the Marine One team and the FAA, there had been some telecom issues; that's been now elevated,” Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy told reporters during a press conference earlier this month, but did not elaborate on what those issues were.

Duffy reiterated that since the midair collision, DOT has changed traffic rules, including the closure of a helicopter route, to separate helicopter and airplane traffic, with limited exceptions for presidential movements, law enforcement and first-responder operations.