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Two pilots near a Washington DC airport were recorded meowing and barking at each other over the radio before an air traffic controller told them to 'be professional.'
The airport, Ronald Reagan Washington National, was the site of the deadliest plane crash in the US in nearly 25 years.
A mid-air collision between an Army Black Hawk helicopter and an American Airlines passenger jet in January 2025 left 67 people dead.
A year-long investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) determined that a combination of systemic flaws and 'individual errors' contributed to the tragedy.
Among those errors was a lack of warnings issued by air traffic control, and the helicopter pilots having visual separation approval so they could use their own eyes to maintain distance.
The devastating accident led to a series of significant reforms to protocols and airspace at the DC airport and other airports around the country.
It also arguably casts the recent, seemingly lighthearted exchange of animal sounds between pilots in a more serious light.
In a newly released recording, one of the pilots overheard in air traffic control could be heard saying 'meow' before another pilot replied with his own 'meow.'
Two pilots were recorded meowing and barking at each other near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, which was the site of the deadliest plane crash in the US in nearly 25 years. Wreckage from the crash is pictured being recovered with the Capitol in the background
The mid-air collision between an American Airlines passenger jet and an Army Black Hawk helicopter left 67 people dead. Wreckage from the crash is pictured with Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in the background
An air traffic controller interjected and said: 'You guys need to be professional.'
The second pilot then repeated 'meow' four more times, and the first pilot barked rapidly.
'This is why you still fly an RJ (regional jet),' the air traffic controller then said.
On Wednesday, CBS News posted a clip of the recording on X, where it has already received more than 4 million views.
The post sparked a lively debate about how serious the actions of the pilots were, with some saying it was a problem, while others said it was not a big deal and people were overreacting.
'Fire them. Simple as that. You want to joke around do it on your own time and don't be doing it when you're in a position that can impact the safety of others. Especially after all of the airplane tragedies we've seen over the last few months,' one user wrote.
'As a pilot I find this behavior unacceptable. It’s one thing to add some humor to a radio call but to continue as they did is completely unprofessional,' a second user wrote.
'Fire them. This isn’t role play time or a video game. People’s lives are in their hands and they’re meowing and barking? They clearly don’t take their jobs seriously,' said a third.
'Everyone acting shocked but this has been an open secret for years commercial pilots use certain channels to make animal noises,' said one person who thought the clip was not a big deal.
'Pretty sure air traffic was being sarcastic back with the rj comment too. Let people have fun - it relieves stress so they can fly better.'
'As long as nothing bad happened, and it’s not something they do regularly- I don’t see the problem here,' a second person who was unfazed said.
'It’s an extremely stressful job. Let them have a little fun to break the tension when nothing's going on.'
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