Military air traffic controllers lost contact with an Army Black Hawk helicopter for about 20 seconds as it approached the Pentagon on May 1, which resulted in two commercial jets aborting their landings at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, a top Army official has said.
Brig. Gen. Matthew Braman, head of Army aviation, said the loss of contact occurred because a temporary control tower antenna was not positioned to maintain communication with the helicopter as it flew low and rounded the Pentagon to land. He said the antenna had been set up during construction of a new control tower and has since been moved to the Pentagon’s roof to prevent a recurrence.
