Federal officials investigating Marine One safety incident while Trump on board
Aviation officials and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) are reviewing an air traffic safety incident involving the Marine One presidential helicopter that occurred this week while President Donald Trump was on board, authorities said on Wednesday.
The incident occurred around 2:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday as Marine One lifted off from the Ellipse near the White House with the president aboard and headed to Joint Base Andrews in Maryland as part of the president's first leg of a trip to the West Coast, according to a statement from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
But as the military helicopter took off, commercial air traffic at nearby Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) was not halted as required by safety protocols, according to officials. Standard protocols require air traffic controllers to pause all other air traffic three minutes before Marine One is set to take off.
According to an air traffic communication recording provided by ATC.com, Marine One gave air traffic controllers a three-minute notice that it was about to take off, but a controller did not hear the transmission because someone else was talking on the frequency at the same time.
"Marine One flights are piloted by some of the best aviators in the world, and at no point was the President in harm's way," the White House said in a statement on Wednesday.
The FAA said Wednesday that preliminary information showed the incident resulted in what the agency referred to as a "momentary loss of separation" between Marine One and an American Airlines regional carrier flight that was taking off from the airport.
FAA rules require that commercial aircraft maintain a minimum of 1.5 miles horizontal separation and 500 feet vertical separation from any helicopter passing near DCA.
At no time did the American Airlines regional carrier flight get dangerously close to Marine One, according to the FAA.
The Wall Street Journal first reported the incident on Tuesday night.
"Based on our preliminary safety review, there was momentary loss of separation after which the aircraft continued to move away from one another," the FAA statement said. "The air traffic controller was in contact with both the commercial pilot and Marine One pilot during the loss of separation."
The FAA said it is continuing to review the incident and "will implement any appropriate corrective actions based on our findings."
