Federal private investigators have actually raised issues of a capacity for another lethal airplane crash at Reagan National Airport, after a midair accident previously this year eliminated 67.

The National Transportation Safety Board provided an upgrade on their examination into the cause of the catastrophe which occurred on January 29 in Washington.

An American Airlines jetliner and a Black Hawk military helicopter clashed in midair over the Potomac River, killing everyone on board both aircrafts.

As part of an initial report launched on Tuesday, detectives raised concerns of more collisions including helicopters at the airport.

NTSB chair Jennifer Homendy said: 'We stay worried about the substantial potential for future mid-air accident at DCA.'

Her issues revolve around Transport Secretary Sean Duffy transferring to restrict helicopter traffic around the location, however that is set to cease at the end of the month.

When cops, medical or governmental transportation helicopters should utilize the space civilian aircrafts are stopped from being in the very same area.

Homendy stated the NTSB is now advising that the FAA find a 'long-term solution' for alternate paths for helicopters when two of the airport's runways remain in usage.

Emergency units respond after a traveler aircraft collided with a helicopter in the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington Airport on January 30, 2025 in Arlington, Virginia

Chairman of the National Transportation Safety Bureau (NTSB) Jennifer Homendy talks to reporters about the 29 January mid-air collision

It was likewise exposed on Tuesday that there was cautioning signs in the lead up to the lethal catastrophe.

Those penetrating the crash went through 944,179 operations between October 2021 and December 2024.

It was discovered that 15,214 'near-miss events' of planes getting signals about helicopters being in close distance in between October 2021 and December 2024.

The NTSB likewise said that there were 85 cases where two aircraft where laterally split by less than 1,500 feet, and a vertical separation of less than 200 feet.

Homendy included: 'That data from October 2021 through December 2024, (the FAA) could have utilized that details any time to identify that we have a trend here and an issue here, and took a look at that route; that didn't happen, which is why we're acting today. But regrettably, people lost lives, and enjoyed ones are grieving.'

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy knocked these findings at a later press conference on Tuesday.

Duffy stated: 'I believe the concern is when this information can be found in how did the FAA not understand. How did they not study the data to say "hey, this is a hot spot, we are having near misses out on and if we do not change our methods we are gon na lose lives".'

He included: 'That wasn't done, possibly there was a focus on something besides safety.'

Duffy would later on included when questioned by a reporter about the near misses out on that the data had 'p *** ed him off'.

Pictured: Parts of the wreckage seen being in the Potomac River after Flight 5342 hit an Army Black Hawk helicopter on Wednesday night, eliminating 67 individuals

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Investigators believe that the helicopter included in the crash may have had incorrect elevation readings in the minutes before the crash.

The crash most likely happened at an elevation just under 300 feet, as the airplane descended towards the chopper, which was above its 200-foot limitation for that area.

On Tuesday American Airlines welcomed the report by the NTSB, saying: 'We're grateful for the National Transportation Safety Board's urgent safety recommendations to limit helicopter traffic near DCA and for its comprehensive examination.

'We will continue to collaborate carefully with PSA Airlines as it works together as an investigative party member.'

The helicopter pilots may have also missed part of another communication, when the tower stated the jet was turning toward a different runway, Homendy said last month.

The helicopter was on a 'check' flight that night where the pilot was undergoing a yearly test and a test on utilizing night vision safety glasses, Homendy stated.

Investigators believe the team was using night vision goggles throughout the flight.

The Army has stated the Black Hawk team was highly experienced, and accustomed to the congested skies around the country ´ s capital.

At the time of the crash, a single air traffic controller was simultaneously monitoring both the helicopter and airplane traffic.

Those tasks are typically managed in between two people from 10am till 9:30 pm, according to an early FAA report seen by The New york city Times.

Those jobs are usually handled in between two people from 10am until 9:30 pm, according to the report.

Surveillance video footage drawn from inside the airport captured the moment the two clashed in midair

At the time of the accident, a single air traffic controller was simultaneously monitoring both the helicopter and plane traffic. Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport is seen here

After 9:30 pm the duties are generally integrated and delegated one person as the airport sees less traffic later in the night.

A manager supposedly decided to combine those responsibilities before the arranged cutoff time nevertheless, and enabled one air traffic controller to leave work early.

The FAA report stated that staffing setup 'was not typical for the time of day and volume of traffic'.

Reagan National has been understaffed for lots of years, with simply 19 totally licensed controllers since September 2023 - well below the target of 30 - according to the most current Air Traffic Controller Workforce Plan submitted to Congress.

The situation appeared to have improved ever since, as a source informed CNN the Reagan National control tower was 85 percent staffed with 24 of 28 positions filled.

Chronic understaffing at air traffic control towers is nothing new, with well-known causes consisting of high turnover and budget cuts.

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In order to fill the spaces, controllers are regularly asked to work 10-hour days, 6 days a week.

After the release of the report, previous Inspector General of the US Department of Transportation Mary Schiavo deemed the findings as 'unusual'.

She said: 'This NTSB action is highly uncommon. The release of an emergency situation suggestion requesting the FAA take instant action, before the conclusion of the NTSB investigation is uncommon.'

The 2 airplane had actually clashed in a huge fireball that was visible on dashcams of cars driving on highways that snake around the airport, before plunging into the river.

Less than a month later on, on February 17, a Delta traveler plane crashed-landed upside down in chaotic scenes at Toronto Pearson International Airport in Canada.

Miraculously, everyone on board endured after being suspended upside-down by their seatbelts for a number of minutes till they tentatively began evacuating.

The airplane had been heading to Toronto from Minneapolis - Saint Paul International Airport with 76 passengers and 4 team members on board.

Some 21 people were taken to the healthcare facility for treatment to minor injuries, and Delta has actually used each person a no-strings $30,000 payout in settlement.

And the plane carnage is continuous - on Sunday, yet another jet crash-landed, this time in a parking area of a rural Pennsylvania retirement home.

Dramatic footage showed the Beechcraft A36TC appear in flames in the parking area of Brethren Village in Manheim Township. Five individuals were rushed to medical facility.

Medics, ambulances, and emergency situation lorries hurried to the scene in Lancaster County as flames engulfed the airplane and close-by vehicles.

The airplane took off as scheduled on Sunday afternoon, however quickly requested to land back on the tarmac since its door had actually opened.

American Airlines