3 ms·
Short runway too. 9/11 restrictions only made it that much worse. It was discussed post 9/11 about closing National Airport, but congress wouldn't hear it. It
by wiredfool 2y ago
Short runway too. 9/11 restrictions only made it that much worse.
It was discussed post 9/11 about closing National Airport, but congress wouldn't hear it. It was too convenient from DC. (At a time when IAD was way the hell out there, rather than being 1/2 the way out the sprawl.)
I won't fly through DCA in the winter, because when I was a kid there was the Air Florida crash. I'd much prefer IAD with it's 3 mile runways and straight approaches.
- rob74 2y agoThe Air Florida crash had very little to do with the airport and a lot to do with the pilots who took off with dangerous amounts of ice/snow on the wings. Fortunately, de-icing procedures have also improved since then - in the 80s, it was possible to have a long time between deicing and takeoff; today, deicing is done at the end of the runway, shortly before lining up for takeoff. Full story: https://admiralcloudberg.medium.com/the-cold-laws-of-winter-the-crash-of-air-florida-flight-90-cdcba7847e0a https://admiralcloudberg.medium.com/the-cold-laws-of-winter-...
- wiredfool 2y agoI was in 6th grade. It was a shitty day all around -- there was a metrorail accident under the river. I was on a school bus for 4 hours while getting home in the snow. The plane hit a bridge and went into the river. Think of what you know about DC traffic when there's a flake of snow in the air, and put an airliner crash and a metro accident on top of that. Maybe it's not logical, but I'm still not a fan of flying through National in the winter.