Why Are D.C. Plane Crash Investigators Focused on Night-Vision Goggles?
Investigators have yet to determine whether the crew of an Army helicopter was wearing the devices when the Black Hawk crashed into a civilian airliner last week.
As divers and salvage crews begin pulling parts and pieces of an American Airlines regional commuter jet and an Army helicopter from the Potomac River near Reagan National Airport in Virginia after the crash last week, investigators will start looking for clues as to how the disaster, which claimed 67 lives, happened.
One of the open questions is whether or not the military aircrew flying the UH-60 Black Hawk was wearing night-vision goggles at the time of the collision.
How common is it for military helicopter pilots to fly with night-vision goggles?
For military pilots, night-vision goggles are used just as commonly as they are by troops on the ground.
According to an Army report, the service began issuing night-vision devices to its aviators in 1985 and has continually acquired goggles that allow pilots and aircrews to see more clearly and with better depth perception at night ever since.
Pete Hegseth, secretary of defense, said the Army crew members involved in Wednesday’s crash were performing a required annual night training and that they “did have night-vision goggles.” But Mr. Hegseth did not say if the goggles were in use at the time and National Transportation Safety Board investigators said they did not yet know.
How do they work?
The devices work by amplifying light in the wearer’s field of view. With them, dim objects become brighter — even making stargazing possible in light-polluted cities.