“At no point was the president in harm’s way,” the White House said. Aviation officials and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) are reviewing an air traffic safety incident involving the Marine One presidential helicopter that occurred this week while President Donald Trump was on board, authorities said on Wednesday. The incident occurred around 2:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday as Marine One lifted off from the Ellipse near the White House with the president aboard and headed to Joint Base Andrews in Maryland as part of the president’s first leg of a trip to the West Coast, according to a statement from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). But as the military helicopter took off, commercial air traffic at nearby Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) was not halted as required by safety protocols, according to officials.
Standard protocols require air traffic controllers to pause all other air traffic three minutes before Marine One is set to take off. According to an air traffic communication recording provided by ATC.com, Marine One gave air traffic controllers a three-minute notice that it was about to take off, but a controller did not hear the transmission because someone else was talking on the frequency at the same time. “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,” the White House said in a statement on Wednesday.
