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Federal private investigators have actually raised concerns of a potential for another deadly plane crash at Reagan National Airport, after a midair collision earlier this year eliminated 67.

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

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

As part of an initial report launched on Tuesday, investigators raised issues of more collisions involving helicopters at the airport.

NTSB chair Jennifer Homendy stated: 'We remain worried about the significant capacity for future mid-air accident at DCA.'

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

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

Homendy stated the NTSB is now advising that the FAA find a 'irreversible option' for detours for helicopters when 2 of the airport's runways are in use.

Emergency systems react after a guest aircraft hit 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 accident

It was also exposed on Tuesday that there was alerting indications in the lead up to the fatal catastrophe.

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

It was uncovered that 15,214 'near-miss events' of aircrafts getting informs about helicopters remaining in close proximity 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) might have utilized that info at any time to determine that we have a pattern here and an issue here, and looked at that route; that didn't happen, which is why we're doing something about it today. But sadly, people lost lives, and liked ones are grieving.'

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

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

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

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

Pictured: Parts of the wreckage seen sitting 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 might have had unreliable altitude readings in the minutes before the crash.

The collision most likely occurred at an altitude simply under 300 feet, as the airplane descended towards the chopper, which was above its 200-foot limitation for that location.

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

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

The helicopter pilots may have likewise missed part of another interaction, 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 going through a yearly test and a test on utilizing night vision goggles, Homendy stated.

Investigators believe the crew was wearing night vision safety glasses throughout the flight.

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

At the time of the accident, a single air traffic controller was all at once keeping track of both the helicopter and aircraft traffic.

Those jobs are normally dealt with between 2 people from 10am up until 9:30 pm, according to an early FAA report seen by The New York Times.

Those tasks are generally managed in between two individuals from 10am until 9:30 pm, according to the report.

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

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

After 9:30 pm the responsibilities are usually combined and delegated a single person as the airport sees less traffic later in the night.

A supervisor reportedly chose to combine those duties before the set up cutoff time nevertheless, and enabled one air traffic controller to leave work early.

The FAA report said that staffing configuration 'was not regular for the time of day and volume of traffic'.

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

The scenario appeared to have actually improved ever since, 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 towers is absolutely nothing brand-new, with well-known causes including high turnover and budget cuts.

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

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

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

The two airplane had actually collided in a substantial fireball that was noticeable on dashcams of automobiles 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 aircraft crashed-landed upside down in chaotic scenes at Toronto Pearson International Airport in Canada.

Miraculously, everybody on board survived after being suspended upside-down by their seatbelts for a number of minutes up until they tentatively started leaving.

The aircraft had actually been heading to Toronto from Minneapolis - Saint Paul International Airport with 76 guests and four team members on board.

Some 21 people were taken to the hospital for treatment to small injuries, and Delta has actually used everyone a no-strings $30,000 payment in settlement.

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

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

Medics, ambulances, and emergency cars hurried to the scene in Lancaster County as flames engulfed the airplane and neighboring lorries.

The aircraft took off as set up on Sunday afternoon, but quickly requested to land back on the tarmac due to the fact that its door had opened.

American Airlines