Why does military use helicopters around DMV?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Too many political VIPs see the helicopter ride as a perk of doing the job. The pilots need flight hours. The military likes to use their toy; more use means more justification for higher budgets.

Thus, you have a bunch of flights at all hours of the day because VIPs don't want to sit in a car ride to the Pentagon or Langley. But the airspace around DCA is the most congested in the country and the odds of a catastrophic accident go up the more aircraft you put in the air.

It's a self-fulfilling prophecy.

This 100%

Self-important people fly to meetings at Langley, Pentagon, etc rather than driving.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Boy this thread definitely is not the best of DCUM.

It’s the epitome of DCUM delusion

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OMG what is wrong with you people.

This was an accident caused by Trump and his idiot sycophants who removed the guardrails.

Neither pilot wanted this to happen. It was an accident tragic and most likely could have been prevented or maybe not.

However our military needs to train.

You can not have close in airports and not have this happen.

How do you know it is by removing guardrails? Was the BH aircraft coming out of Langley? Weren't there reports of coaches from some country on the AA plane? could it be something else? Will taxpayers know?

Yes the helicopter came from Langley

Weird that a helo coming from Langley ended up killing Russians.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OMG what is wrong with you people.

This was an accident caused by Trump and his idiot sycophants who removed the guardrails.

Neither pilot wanted this to happen. It was an accident tragic and most likely could have been prevented or maybe not.

However our military needs to train.

You can not have close in airports and not have this happen.

I hardly think an accident like this is inevitable -- we went decades without it happening, after all -- and I also don't understand what guardrails you think Trump removed in the 10 days since he took office that caused this crash.

I don't like anything he's doing, but blaming him for the accident seems almost as incorrect as his attempt to blame diversity programs.

Trump is blaming Biden, D.E.I. and Obama even thought HE is the one who ran the very programs he is castigating.

So I’ll blame Trump, thanks. Don’t need to be fair to Trump.

DP

[Anonymous]

Has anyone asked why the military needs to do night vision googles helicopter training in DC and not on a military base someplace? And near a commercial airport landing passenger planes? Why are they putting people at risk when they have huge military bases all over the country?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Has anyone asked why the military needs to do night vision googles helicopter training in DC and not on a military base someplace? And near a commercial airport landing passenger planes? Why are they putting people at risk when they have huge military bases all over the country?

No you are the first person this ever occurred to. You must alert the media.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OMG what is wrong with you people.

This was an accident caused by Trump and his idiot sycophants who removed the guardrails.

Neither pilot wanted this to happen. It was an accident tragic and most likely could have been prevented or maybe not.

However our military needs to train.

You can not have close in airports and not have this happen.

The military doesn’t need to train in the approach path of one of the most congested airports/ air spaces in the nation close to residential areas.

There are other places they can fly.

[Anonymous]

Who are all these VIPs? How many are they? Who gets help service? Are they US officials?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Has anyone asked why the military needs to do night vision googles helicopter training in DC and not on a military base someplace? And near a commercial airport landing passenger planes? Why are they putting people at risk when they have huge military bases all over the country?

Most of the bases aren't huge and they fly out of Andrews as does the president and friends.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Too many political VIPs see the helicopter ride as a perk of doing the job. The pilots need flight hours. The military likes to use their toy; more use means more justification for higher budgets.

Thus, you have a bunch of flights at all hours of the day because VIPs don't want to sit in a car ride to the Pentagon or Langley. But the airspace around DCA is the most congested in the country and the odds of a catastrophic accident go up the more aircraft you put in the air.

It's a self-fulfilling prophecy.

There is barely any traffic between Langley and DC during the hours I hear these helicopters fly. It's almost like they are flying people to dinners at dinner time, when a drive in a luxury limo is likely going to take the same amount of time and provide the same comfort.

[Anonymous]

NYTimes has an article where military says they need to train where they fly and that they will be responsible for getting everyone to a safe location if something bad happens.
But in those instances the ckmmmercial and private jet traffic would surely be cancelled/diverted so they should really only need to train when skies are empty.
Could FOIA filing get reasons for chopper rides? That would be very revealing.

[Anonymous]

This is OP. Gratified to see FAA has closed down DCA approach paths for non-emergency helicopters.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Who are all these VIPs? How many are they? Who gets help service? Are they US officials?

Generals, Congressmen and senior political appointees. The amount grows every year.

[Anonymous]

I live out all the way in Rockville. During Trump's first term, I definitely heard more low flying helicopters over Rockville. Towards the end of his term, one flew so low over my neighborhood at night, I thought it was going to crash.

The low flying helicopters over Rockville seemed to stop during Biden's term.

But then last week, I heard a few low flying helicopters over Rockville again. Who knows how the rest of the term will play out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I live out all the way in Rockville. During Trump's first term, I definitely heard more low flying helicopters over Rockville. Towards the end of his term, one flew so low over my neighborhood at night, I thought it was going to crash.

The low flying helicopters over Rockville seemed to stop during Biden's term.

But then last week, I heard a few low flying helicopters over Rockville again. Who knows how the rest of the term will play out.

Trump was going to a doctor out there a lot, I remember. Probably that again. In forty more years we'll find out about what the illness was.