ColdBlueSteel
Distinguished Member
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Runways are numbered in accordance with the magnetic heading they are oriented along, truncating the last digit. So when you are taking off or landing on runway 33, your compass will indicate a heading of 330 degrees, or north northwest. 0 degrees is north, 180 is south. You can land/takeoff in either direction, so if landing the opposite direction you would be landing on Runway 15 (330 degrees -180 degrees=150). Same strip of pavement but opposite landing direction.Oh, this makes less sense to me. I mean, I get it but it's weird. Fortunately, it doesn't matter what I think about it.
The folks that really know what they are talking about are over here: JIA5342 CRJ700 midair collision with PAT25 Blackhawk at DCA - Page 11 - Airliners.net.
Consensus is helicopter pilot confirmed visual contact with the wrong airplane, possibly partly due to lack of explicit instruction from air traffic controller as to where to look in an incredibly busy airspace with ground lights in the mix.
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