Federal investigators have actually raised concerns of a potential for another lethal airplane crash at Reagan National Airport, after a midair crash previously this year killed 67.

The National Transportation Safety Board gave an update on their investigation into the cause of the disaster which took place on January 29 in Washington.

An American Airlines jetliner and a Black Hawk military helicopter clashed in midair over the Potomac River, eliminating everybody on board both airplanes.

As part of a preliminary report released on Tuesday, investigators raised issues of more crashes including helicopters at the airport.

NTSB chair Jennifer Homendy said: 'We remain concerned about the considerable potential for future mid-air accident at DCA.'

Her concerns focus on Transport Secretary Sean Duffy relocating to limit helicopter traffic around the area, but that is set to cease at the end of the month.

When police, medical or presidential transportation helicopters must utilize the space civilian airplanes are stopped from being in the same location.

Homendy stated the NTSB is now advising that the FAA discover a 'permanent solution' for detours for helicopters when 2 of the airport's runways remain in usage.

Emergency units respond after a traveler airplane 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 speaks with reporters about the 29 January mid-air accident

It was likewise revealed on Tuesday that there was alerting indications in the lead up to the fatal disaster.

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

It was revealed that 15,214 'near-miss events' of airplanes getting notifies about helicopters remaining in close proximity in between October 2021 and December 2024.

The NTSB also stated that there were 85 cases where 2 airplane 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) might have utilized that details any time to identify that we have a trend here and a problem here, and took a look at that route; that didn't take place, which is why we're acting today. But regrettably, individuals lost lives, and liked ones are grieving.'

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

Duffy said: 'I think the question is when this information can be found in how did the FAA not know. How did they not study the information to say "hello, this is a location, we are having near misses and if we don't alter our methods we are gon na lose lives".'

He added: 'That wasn't done, maybe there was a focus on something aside from security.'

Duffy would later on added when questioned by a press 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, killing 67 people

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

The accident likely occurred at an altitude simply under 300 feet, as the plane came down toward the chopper, which was above its 200-foot limitation for that location.

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

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

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

The helicopter was on a 'check' flight that night where the pilot was going through an annual test and a test on using night vision safety glasses, Homendy stated.

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

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

At the time of the crash, a single air traffic controller was at the same time keeping an eye on both the helicopter and airplane traffic.

Those tasks are usually dealt with between 2 individuals from 10am till 9:30 pm, according to an early FAA report seen by The New York Times.

Those tasks are typically dealt with between 2 individuals from 10am till 9:30 pm, according to the report.

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

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

After 9:30 pm the duties are usually integrated and left to a single person as the airport sees less traffic later on in the night.

A supervisor reportedly chose to combine those duties before the arranged cutoff time however, 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 actually been understaffed for lots of years, with simply 19 completely accredited controllers as of September 2023 - well below the target of 30 - according to the most recent Air Traffic Controller Workforce Plan submitted to Congress.

The circumstance appeared to have actually enhanced since then, 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 service towers is absolutely nothing new, with well-known causes consisting of high turnover and budget plan cuts.

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

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

She stated: 'This NTSB action is extremely uncommon. The release of an emergency suggestion asking for the FAA take instant action, before the conclusion of the NTSB investigation is uncommon.'

The two aircraft had collided 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 guest aircraft crashed-landed upside down in chaotic scenes at Toronto Pearson International Airport in Canada.

Miraculously, everybody on board made it through after being suspended upside-down by their seatbelts for several minutes until they tentatively began evacuating.

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

Some 21 individuals were taken to the hospital for treatment to minor injuries, and Delta has actually offered each person a no-strings $30,000 payment in compensation.

And the aircraft carnage is continuous - on Sunday, yet another jet crash-landed, this time in a car park of a suburban Pennsylvania retirement community.

Dramatic footage showed the Beechcraft A36TC erupt in flames in the car park of Brethren Village in Manheim Township. Five individuals were rushed to healthcare facility.

Medics, ambulances, and emergency lorries rushed to the scene in Lancaster County as flames engulfed the airplane and nearby automobiles.

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

American Airlines