The air traffic control at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport is pictured, in the aftermath of the collision of American Eagle flight 5342 and a Black Hawk helicopter that crashed into the Potomac River, with the Capitol dome in the background, as seen from Virginia, U.S., January 30, 2025.
Evelyn Hockstein | Reuters
The Federal Aviation Administration will restrict helicopter traffic around Washington, D.C.’s Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport after the fatal collision of Army Black Hawk helicopter with an American Airlines jetliner earlier this week, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said Friday.
“Today’s decision will immediately help secure the airspace near Reagan Airport, ensuring the safety of airplane and helicopter traffic,” Duffy said in a post on X. “The American people deserve full confidence in our aviation system and today’s action is a significant step towards restoring that trust.”
The restricted area includes Memorial Bridge to South Capitol Street Bridge, excluding the Tidal Basin; Haines Point to Wilson Bridge; and the airspace above the airport, Duffy said.
National Transportation Safety Board member Todd Inman said at a briefing Thursday afternoon that helicopters operate in zones, or tracks, in Washington. “This one was transitioning from track one to four as part of their normal procedure,” he said. “If you live in D.C., you see a lot of helicopters going down into this area. So there’s a very well-defined system.”
American Eagle Flight 5342 was seconds away from landing at Reagan National when it collided with the Army helicopter on Wednesday night. All 64 people on board the plane and all three people on the helicopter died. It was the first deadly commercial airline crash in the U.S. in more than 15 years and the deadliest since 2001.
American Airlines CEO Robert Isom said Thursday that it wasn’t clear “why the military aircraft came into the path” of its aircraft. On Friday, Isom thanked President Donald Trump “for his leadership on aviation safety. I applaud him, Secretary Duffy and the Administration for taking quick and decisive action today to restrict helicopter activity around DCA.”
Investigators on Friday continued their investigation, looking at aspects like the altitude of the aircraft, staffing and communication with air traffic controllers.
The American Airlines plane, an regional CRJ700 that was arriving from Wichita, Kansas, was flying at about 300 feet on its final approach when it collided with the Black Hawk.
According to FAA rules, helicopters, which routinely cross through and around Washington, between military bases, the Pentagon and other locations, must fly in the area close to the airport at a maximum of 200 feet.
