Dangerous skies
The Federal Aviation Administration has revealed dangerous flying conditions at Las Vegas’ Harry Reid International Airport.
fatal collision in January of an American Airlines jet and an Army helicopter
The FAA revealed on Tuesday its review into helicopter safety at the busiest airports in the US; the probe was prompted by the fatal collision in January of an American Airlines jet and an Army helicopter in Washington, D.C.
Las Vegas Locally took to X with news that the FAA’s review identified a collision risk between air tour choppers and airplanes in Vegas, and moved swiftly to change Harry Reid’s flying rules, resulting in a 30% drop in “collision alerts” for Las Vegas flights:
Ex-National Transportation Safety Board and FAA Accident Investigator Jeff Guzzetti stated that the drop in Vegas collision alerts in only three weeks suggested that “a real hazard existed before the FAA looked at this.”
AI data analysis
According to Reuters, FAA Acting Administrator Chris Rocheleau revealed that Las Vegas “quickly became a concern” during the review.
Following the January collision that left 67 dead, the FAA said it would employ artificial intelligence to sift through millions of reports to assess US cities with busy helicopter traffic.
As a result of the AI data, Rocheleau stated, the FAA identified a lack of clarity in Vegas over defining “vertical and lateral separation requirements” when helicopters were approaching the international airport.
Harry Reid air traffic controllers “weren’t issuing traffic advisories”
The probe further revealed Harry Reid air traffic controllers “weren’t issuing traffic advisories between returning helicopters and airplanes.”
Rocheleau said his agency moved fast to exercise “positive control over the helicopters” while issuing additional traffic advisories to pilots in and out of Vegas.
Former agency accident investigator Guzzetti said it made sense for the FAA to look at Vegas first given its large volume of helicopters and commercial flights. “I think that they will find issues at other airports, but maybe not to the degree that they found with this one.”
On Tuesday, Rocheleau promised to take extra action in Vegas and other US airports, where the agency identifies concerns.
Feds praised
Reuters cited an aviation lawyer representing multiple families of victims of the January collision with the Black Hawk helicopter as praising the FAA for its actions.
FAA deserves recognition for taking these steps”
Robert Clifford stated that despite frequently criticizing the aviation body: “the FAA deserves recognition for taking these steps to protect the traveling public.”
The lawyer added: “The extra vigilance by the FAA may save many lives.”
