Pilot of Blackhawk Helicopter In DC Plance Crashed Identified: Rebecca M. Lobach

After withholding her name since the tragic crash, the army finally identified Saturday the third soldier on the Black Hawk helicopter involved in the midair crash over the Potomac River Wednesday night as Capt. Rebecca M. Lobach.

Lobach, of Durham, North Carolina, was the last member of the helicopter’s crew to be identified.

Lobach’s family initially withheld her identity when the Army released the names of the other two soldiers killed in the collision, Staff Sgt. Ryan Austin O’Hara and Chief Warrant Officer 2 Andrew Lloyd Eaves.

“Rebecca was many things. She was a daughter, sister, partner, and friend. She was a servant, a caregiver, an advocate. Most of all, she loved and was loved. Her life was short, but she made a difference in the lives of all who knew her. Our hearts break for the other families who have lost loved ones in this national tragedy and we mourn with them,” her family said in a statement.

Why did they scrub all her social media accounts?

Conversely, the pilot of the passenger plane that hit a military chopper and crashed in the Potomac River this week may have attempted a last second move to evade the collision, NTSB said at a news conference.

The CRJ was at 325 feet at the time of impact “plus or minus 25-feet” the NTSB revealed at the press conference, Saturday.

The NY Post:

The U.S. Army has identified the female soldier in the doomed Black Hawk helicopter that crashed into an American Airlines flight this week, killing 67 people.

Capt. Rebecca M. Lobach, of Durham, North Carolina, was assigned to the 12th Aviation Battalion in Fort Belvoir, Virginia, and had served since July 2019, the Army said in a statement.

The Army had initially refused to identify Lobach at the request of her family.

The decision to release her name came “at the request of and in coordination with the family,” according to the statement.

“We are devastated by the loss of our beloved Rebecca. She was a bright star in all our lives,” her family said in a statement released by the Army.

“Rebecca was a warrior and would not hesitate to defend her country in battle … Rebecca was many things. She was a daughter, sister, partner, and friend. She was a servant, a caregiver, an advocate. Most of all she loved and was loved. Her life was short, but she made a difference in the lives of all who knew her.”

Lobach was a decorated service member, whose accolades include the Army Commendation Medal, the National Defense Service Medal and the Army Service Ribbon. According to her family, she graduated within the top 20% of ROTC cadets nationwide.

Lobach also served as a White House social aide during the Biden administration. Last month, she escorted Ralph Lauren through the White House when he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, according to CBS.

USA Today reporter and Army vet Davis Winkie credited Lobach as instrumental in navigating the “hardest periods” of his personal life during their time together at the University at North Carolina- Chapel Hill Army ROTC.