Marine One Crew's Communication Attempts Failed Before Close Encounter with Passenger Jet

<p>The crew of Marine One made multiple attempts to notify Reagan National Airport that President Donald Trump's helicopter was preparing to depart on August 4, but these attempts were not successful, according to a preliminary report from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) released on Thursday.</p><p>The report indicates that the crew's initial call to the helicopter-control frequency at Reagan National was not received, and a subsequent transmission was described as "broken and completely unreadable." After failing to reach the tower, the Marine One crew attempted to relay the required three-minute notification through the helicopter facility at Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling, but this effort also did not succeed.</p><p>As a result of the missed communication, controllers at Reagan National did not receive the necessary notice to halt departures before the presidential helicopter took off. Consequently, Envoy Air Flight 3742, an Embraer E-170 destined for Pensacola, Florida, was cleared for takeoff from Runway 1 as Trump departed the White House aboard Marine One for a trip to Los Angeles.</p><p>The NTSB reported that the passenger jet was in its initial climb when Marine One departed from the Ellipse, located approximately two miles north of the airport. Preliminary estimates from the FAA indicated that the two aircraft came within about 0.82 nautical miles laterally and approximately 700 feet vertically. No injuries or damage were reported, and both flights continued without further incident.</p><p>The flight crew of the Envoy jet reported that the aircraft's traffic-collision system announced "Traffic, Traffic" as it climbed and accelerated after takeoff. Although the pilots did not visually spot Marine One, they noted that the helicopter appeared on their cockpit display to the right and below their aircraft.</p><p>The system did not issue a resolution advisory, which would have provided a more urgent instruction to avoid another aircraft, according to the NTSB report.</p><p>Marine One was eventually able to establish contact with the tower after climbing to a sufficient altitude for reliable communications. Controllers then issued a traffic advisory, and the helicopter crew reported having the Envoy jet in sight.</p><p>The report also highlighted that the communications issue had been discussed just days prior. On July 30, Marine Helicopter Squadron One (HMX-1) met with Reagan National tower staff to address operations in the area. During this meeting, HMX-1 expressed concerns about "spotty" communications, and controllers noted that HMX-1 crews had not consistently provided the required three-minute warning before takeoff. Both parties agreed that helicopter crews would implement backup methods to notify the tower if direct radio communication failed.</p><p>Despite these precautions, Marine One's crew attempted to use backup methods on August 4, but the message still did not reach the tower. FAA technicians later determined that there was inadequate line-of-sight coverage between the radio transmitter-receiver site and the Ellipse, where Marine One was temporarily operating due to construction at the White House.</p><p>In response, the FAA relocated the radios used for the airport's helicopter-control frequency from a nearby residential area to the top of Reagan National's control tower. Following this adjustment, the FAA conducted radio checks with two HMX-1 aircraft operating near the Ellipse and reported no deficiencies.</p><p>The FAA and NTSB began reviewing the incident earlier this month and characterized the event as a "momentary loss of separation." The FAA stated, "Based on our preliminary safety review, there was momentary loss of separation, after which the aircraft continued to move away from one another." During this time, the air traffic controller maintained contact with both the commercial pilot and the Marine One pilot.</p><p>While the aircraft were estimated to be less than 1.5 nautical miles apart horizontally, the NTSB noted that the preliminary estimate of 700 feet of vertical separation met FAA standards. In the relevant Class B airspace, the standard requires either 1.5 nautical miles of lateral separation or 500 feet of vertical separation.</p><p>The NTSB is continuing to analyze surveillance data to determine the closest point between the two aircraft. The White House previously stated that Trump was never in danger, with White House spokesman Kush Desai affirming that "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."</p><p>The NTSB clarified that its preliminary report is intended to present factual information developed to date and does not include analysis, conclusions, or findings related to probable cause. The investigation remains ongoing, and any safety recommendations will be publicly announced, with further findings released through the public docket and final report process.</p>