Photo: Shutterstock "Helicopter flights near Reagan Airport in Washington D.C. must be banned immediately".
This is the bottom line of the report being published tonight (11.3.25) by the National Transportation Safety Board of the United States (NTSB). The recommendation to be given to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is a complete prohibition of helicopter flights in the area of Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.
According to the report, the fatal collision that occurred on January 29, resulting in the deaths of 67 passengers and crew members, happened due to the congestion in the skies in that area.
As a reminder, a military helicopter of the UH-60 (Black Hawk) model collided with a passenger plane of the CRJ700 model from PSA Airlines / AMERICAN EAGLE while landing.
Jennifer Homandi, Chair of the NTSB, said that "the distance between aircraft and helicopters at Reagan Airport is not sufficient and constitutes an intolerable risk to aviation safety."
The final report details various technical aspects to prevent the recurrence of similar and tragic incidents in the future. As we have previously reported, since that fatal accident, many voices have been raised about the "near misses" that have occurred in the area. President Donald Trump even commented on the matter, saying "This is not good!" and blamed the previous administration.
In the early days following the accident, U.S. Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy was quoted as saying: "We are committed to understanding the factors behind this accident and ensuring that all necessary lessons are learned to prevent similar events in the future."
The CEO of American Airlines, Doug Parker, stated then that "this is a sad day for the families of our passengers and crew. We are fully cooperating with the investigating authorities."