‘Systemic’ Flaws Led to Fatal 2025 Midair Crash Near Washington

(Bloomberg) -- Inaction by government agencies and other systemic failures contributed to a 2025 midair collision that was the worst US civil aviation disaster in more than two decades, the head of the US National Transportation Safety Board said.

NTSB has been investigating what caused a US Army helicopter to slam into an American Airlines Group Inc. regional jet attempting to land at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, the closest to the nation’s capital, on Jan. 29, 2025. 

The accident resulted in the deaths of three military personnel on the Sikorsky UH-60L helicopter and 64 passengers and crew on the commercial airliner, a CRJ-700. 

“You will hear how deep underlying systemic failures, system flaws aligned to create the conditions that led to this devastating tragedy,” NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy said at the start of a meeting Tuesday to determine the probable cause of the midair collision. 

The crash sparked renewed concerns about aviation safety and led to a crackdown on helicopter flights near the airport. It also helped galvanize support for major upgrades to the nation’s aging air traffic control system. 

In her opening statement, Homendy cited many factors that led to last year’s crash, including the design of the airspace around Reagan airport and the limitations of “see and avoid,” a collision avoidance method that relies on pilots to scan for and maneuver around nearby aircraft. 

She also pointed to what she called the failure of “entire organizations to evaluate and act on readily available data, heed repeated recommendations and foster robust safety cultures.” 

Prior to Tuesday’s meeting, investigators had disclosed several findings, including that the helicopter involved in the crash was flying too high, was dealing with faulty altitude data and wasn’t broadcasting its position using a technology, known as ADS-B Out. 

The Republican chair of the Senate Commerce Committee, Ted Cruz, and the panel’s top Democrat, Maria Cantwell, have teamed up on legislation to tighten the rules that allow military aircraft to fly without having ADS-B Out turned on. The Senate passed the bill by unanimous consent in December but it has since stalled in the House.  

During its probe, the NTSB also uncovered thousands of prior instances where commercial aircraft and helicopters came within an unsafe distance near Reagan airport. In addition, a single air traffic controller was overseeing both planes and helicopters in the airspace above the airport on the night of the crash and failed to warn the American Airlines jet that there was a US Army Black Hawk in the vicinity. 

Since the accident, the Transportation Department’s Office of Inspector General has opened an audit to assess the FAA’s management of the airspace around Reagan airport, as well as policies and procedures for overseeing ADS-B Out exemptions. 

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