Federal investigators have raised concerns of a capacity for another fatal plane crash at Reagan National Airport, after a midair accident previously this year killed 67.

The National Transportation Safety Board offered 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, eliminating everybody on board both aircrafts.

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

NTSB chair Jennifer Homendy said: 'We stay concerned about the significant capacity for future mid-air accident at DCA.'

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

When police, medical or governmental transport helicopters must utilize the area civilian aircrafts are stopped from being in the very same area.

Homendy said the NTSB is now suggesting that the FAA find a 'long-term option' for detours for helicopters when two of the airport's runways remain in use.

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 to press reporters about the 29 January mid-air collision

It was likewise revealed on Tuesday that there was alerting check in the lead up to the lethal catastrophe.

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

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

The NTSB likewise stated that there were 85 cases where 2 aircraft where laterally divided by less than 1,500 feet, and a vertical separation of less than 200 feet.

Homendy added: 'That data from October 2021 through December 2024, (the FAA) could have utilized that details whenever to figure out that we have a trend here and an issue here, and looked at that path; that didn't occur, which is why we're taking action today. But unfortunately, individuals lost lives, and enjoyed ones are grieving.'

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

Duffy stated: 'I think the concern is when this data is available in how did the FAA not know. How did they not study the information to say "hello, this is a hot area, we are having near misses and if we don't alter our ways we are gon na lose lives".'

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

Duffy would later added when questioned by a reporter about the near misses out on that the information 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 individuals

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Investigators believe that the helicopter included in the crash might have had incorrect altitude readings in the minutes before the crash.

The accident likely happened at an elevation simply under 300 feet, as the aircraft came down towards the chopper, which was above its 200-foot limit for that location.

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

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

The helicopter pilots may have likewise missed out on part of another communication, when the tower said the jet was turning towards a different 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 congested skies around the country ´ s capital.

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

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

Those tasks are typically dealt with in between two individuals from 10am up until 9:30 pm, according to the report.

Surveillance video drawn from inside the airport recorded the minute the two clashed in midair

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

After 9:30 pm the responsibilities are generally integrated and left to one individual as the airport sees less traffic later in the night.

A supervisor reportedly decided to combine those responsibilities before the set up cutoff time however, and enabled one air traffic controller to leave work early.

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

Reagan National has actually been understaffed for numerous years, with just 19 completely certified controllers since September 2023 - well listed below the target of 30 - according to the most recent Air Traffic Controller Workforce Plan sent to Congress.

The circumstance appeared to have improved considering that then, as a source told 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 brand-new, with widely known causes including high turnover and budget plan cuts.

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In order to fill the gaps, controllers are often 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 considered the findings as 'unusual'.

She said: 'This NTSB action is extremely uncommon. The release of an emergency suggestion requesting the FAA take immediate action, before the conclusion of the NTSB examination is rare.'

The 2 aircraft had actually collided in a substantial fireball that showed up on dashcams of cars and trucks driving on highways that snake around the airport, before plunging into the river.

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

Miraculously, everyone on board made it through after being suspended upside-down by their seat belts for numerous minutes until they tentatively began evacuating.

The plane had been heading to Toronto from Minneapolis - Saint Paul International Airport with 76 travelers and four crew members on board.

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

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

Dramatic video showed the Beechcraft A36TC appear in flames in the car park of Brethren Village in Manheim Township. Five individuals were rushed to medical facility.

Medics, ambulances, and emergency lorries rushed to the scene in Lancaster County as flames swallowed up the plane and nearby lorries.

The airplane took off as scheduled on Sunday afternoon, but rapidly requested to land back on the tarmac due to the fact that its door had actually opened.

American Airlines