The US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) confirmed on 11 February that investigators have finished on-scene work involving pieces of the MHIRJ CRJ700 and Sikorsky H-60 Black Hawk that collided and plummeted into the Potomac River.
Further examination of components from the PSA Airlines regional jet and US Army helicopter that collided near Ronald Reagan National airport on 29 January “will occur as needed at NTSB laboratories or manufacturer facilities”.
The NTSB says that its helicopter operations and human performance group is continuing “fact-gathering activities” and interviews of army aviation personnel.
Meanwhile, it is continuing to analyse the cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder recovered from the Potomac River.
Investigators have established that the army helicopter was roughly 100ft above the authorised flight ceiling for rotorcraft in the area when it impacted the PSA jet. The inquiry has focused on the situational awareness of the pilots involved.
As the first fatal accident involving a US airline in 16 years, the collision has rocked the aerospace industry and placed airline safety under intense public scrutiny.
