A preliminary report from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has detailed an incident on August 4 where alerts from Marine One, carrying President Trump, went unheard by air traffic controllers at Reagan National Airport. The controller overseeing helicopter traffic informed the incoming controller about an expected VIP movement, indicating awareness of the president's impending flight.
Twenty minutes later, Marine One contacted the airport helicopter controller about its imminent departure, but the transmission was not received. A second attempt by the pilots to reiterate the alert was also unsuccessful, described as "unintelligible" and "broken and unreadable" by the NTSB. The pilots also tried to reach controllers through the helicopter facility at Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling, but this attempt was also unsuccessful.
Despite the communication failures, controllers proceeded with directing commercial air traffic. An Envoy Air jet took off roughly three minutes after the second failed transmission from Marine One. The jet's audible traffic advisory alert activated in the cockpit. Marine One subsequently informed controllers that it was proceeding as previously briefed, to which the helicopter controller responded, "okay, no three minutes roger, proceed as requested."
The NTSB's preliminary report summarizes the events but does not address the root causes, which will be determined in a final report expected within a year.