Aviation is considered one of the safest forms of transportation in the U.S., but many pilots will agree that Reagan National Airport in Arlington, Virginia is one of the trickiest airports to land at.
Following a deadly crash on Wednesday between a passenger plane carrying 64 people and a military Black Hawk helicopter with three servicemembers on board, Scripps News spoke with Laurie Garrow Director of Air Transportation Lab at Georgia Tech about some of the logistical challenges the two aircraft may have faced as the incident is still being investigated.
It's been almost a decade since the last major aviation crash in the U.S., which happened in 2009.
"Usually when things like this happen it's not just one single thing that causes it but usually a combination of multiple things," Garrow explained.
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One factor could have been visibility since the crash happened late at night. "Clearly the two aircraft did not see each other or have time to respond," Garrow said.
When landing or taking off at National, pilots have to avoid a lot of hazards and they have to do so very quickly.
Garrow explained there are a lot of buildings in the area to avoid as well as a lot of sensitive areas — such as the Pentagon — that passenger planes can't fly over.
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