DC Plane Crash Revives Concerns About Busy Reagan National Airport Traffic

VIRGINIA — The American Airlines passenger plane collision with a military helicopter near Reagan National Airport Wednesday, killing 64 passengers on the jet and three soldiers, has revived discussion on safety risks associated with the airport's busy flight traffic.

Speaking to NBC News on Thursday, Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia said he was "dreading in my heart that there could be" an incident like Wednesday night's collision with a previous approval to add more flights to Reagan National Airport.

Kaine said he was "not going to speculate" on the cause of the middair crash, noting the National Transportation Safety Board was handling the investigation. However, the senator has voiced ongoing concerns about safety with air traffic congestion. He pointed to Congress approving the FAA bill last year with five more daily flights at Reagan National Airport, despite attempts by officials like Kaine and fellow Virginia Sen. Mark Warner about an increased risk of collisions.

"I fought very hard and tried to convict my colleagues last year that this was a mistake to add more flights," Kaine told CNN Thursday afternoon. "This is the most congested runway and most prone to delays in the country."

Related: Air Traffic Control Tower Staffing 'Not Normal' During Crash: Report

There were two near-misses of airplanes at Reagan National Airport in 2024, NBC News reported. One in May 2024 involved a plane cleared for takeoff and a plane cleared for landing nearly colliding. The FAA indicated air traffic control withdrew the authorization for takeoff due to the other plan being cleared for landing.

The other incident happened the month before. According to NBC News, one plane was preparing for takeoff while air traffic control told another plane to cross the runway.

"I’m relieved no one was hurt," Kaine said after the May 2024 crash. "But this incident underscores again that DCA is at capacity. This shows why Senate action to jam even more flights into DCA was so dangerous. The FAA must resist any new flights that compromise safety."

According to Kaine, the airport was made to accommodate 15 million travelers each year, but it surpasses 20 million. In 2023, the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority reported a record 25.5 million passengers for Reagan National Airport and record 25.1 million for Dulles International Airport.

As Congress was considering whether to add as many as 28 more flights at Reagan National Airport, the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority urged Congress to reject the proposal. The authority cited the airport's main runway as the busiest in the nation, averaging 813 daily flights, in its opposition.

That doesn't include additional flights on the smaller runways, like the one the American Eagle Flight 5342 was set to land on Wednesday.

According to USA Today, the FAA has sounded the alarm on air traffic controller shortages on the East Coast, which limits the flights that the federal agency can allow. President Donald Trump said he was ending the Biden administration's diversity, equity and inclusion program for the FAA, arguing instead for employing air traffic controllers based on qualifications.

A report by the Federal Aviation Administration says staffing in the air traffic control tower was "not normal" at the time of the midair collision near Washington. The report was obtained Thursday by The Associated Press.

The FAA administrator position was vacant during the deadly collision after the former administrator resigned when Trump became president, CBS News reported. On Thursday, Trump appointed Christopher Rocheleau, who has 22 years of FAA experience, to the acting administrator position.

Wednesday night's collision involved an American Airlines flight with 60 passengers and four crew members aboard and a UH-60 Blackhawk military helicopter with three crew members aboard. Trump confirmed on Thursday that the crash had no survivors.

Like Kaine, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin pointed to the NTSB investigation being critical to pinpoint what went wrong Wednesday night.

"The investigation will be critically important to determine what happened and make sure it never happened again," said Youngkin on CNN Thursday. "Air travel in the U.S. is the safest in the world, and yet this happened. This is a very busy area, it’s a busy area that has been safe."

SEE ALSO:

• Reagan Airport Plane Crash Updates: No Survivors Expected
• Who Was On Flight That Crashed Into Potomac: What We Know So Far
• Olympians, Students Among DC Plane Crash Victims
• 'I Need You To Land': Audio From Moments Before DC Plane Crash