Washington D.C. plane crash: Air traffic controller left early before collision

TMZ

The Federal Aviation Administration says staffing levels were below the “normal” amount when the deadly plane crash occurred over Washington, D.C. … and, it looks like it was a decision made by a supervisor.

The New York Times — citing an anonymous source — says an air traffic control supervisor combined the responsibilities of handling both helicopters and plane flight paths before the usual time … though it’s currently not clear why.

Basically, before 9:30 PM, Reagan Washington National Airport has two controllers — one to handle the choppers and the other to handle the airplanes — and, after 9:30 they transition to only one person because traffic lessens significantly.

However, NYT says the supervisor combined the roles before 9:30 … a deviation from the usual routine. We’ve reached out to Reagan National to confirm, but either way, the FAA has already said staffers were “not normal for the time of day and volume of traffic.”

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