Small details sometimes matter.
At 8:48 and 38 seconds, the ATC at Reagan asks the helicopter
"
PAT-25 Do you have the CRJ in sight?" then directs the helicopter to "
pass behind CRJ"
The helicopter pilot confirms he sees a plane and requests "
visual separation"
https://nypost.com/2025/01/30/us-news/timeline-of-air-traffic-controllers-issuing-warnings-before-american-airlines-plane-black-hawk-helicopter-collision-in-dc/See the problem? Neither the controller nor the helicopter pilot identifies the
direction of the aircraft they mean. Controllers usually include numerical details such as '
CRJ at your eleven o'clock' or 'I have visual at my four o'clock'. That is especially important in high-traffic areas like Reagan.
Also, you may recall that the ATC handling the airliner was not supposed to also be handling the helicopter. One reason why is this:
"One of the factors investigators will likely be looking at is if the crew of the CRJ was aware of the helicopter. Military aircraft often utilize ultra high frequency (UHF) radios while civilian aircraft utilize very high frequency (VHF). The aircraft using disparate frequencies can hear ATC talking to other aircraft but will not hear the pilot's response."https://www.flyingmag.com/news/atc-communications-between-jet-army-black-hawk-face-scrutiny-in-d-c-midair/Any one detail can be important. Put enough assumptions together, and really bad things can happen.
That which does not kill me, will try again and get nastier