Staffing Levels at Reagan Airport Traffic Control Tower Were 'Not Normal' on Night of Crash, FAA Finds: Report

Mar. 15, 2025

Emergency response units search the crash site.Photo:Alex Wong/Getty

Alex Wong/Getty

A preliminary safety report from the Federal Aviation Administration reportedly found that air traffic control staffing was abnormally low atRonald Reagan Washington National Airporton the evening of Wednesday, Jan. 29, according toThe New York Times, which obtained a copy of the report.

The collision, near the Washington, D.C., airport, involved aU.S. Army Black Hawk Helicopter colliding with an American Airlines commercial flight, resulting in the presumed death of 67 people.

The preliminary FAA report states that staffing at the Ronald Reagan National Airport’s air traffic control tower was “not normal for the time of day and volume of traffic.”

The report says the control tower usually has two control officers, with helicopters and airplanes working with separate officers. But on Wednesday night, there was only one officer.

This presents potential complications, because the radio frequencies used to communicate with airplane pilots can be different than those used to communicate with helicopter pilots, per theNYT. Therefore, when the controller is communicating with pilots of the both the helicopter and the plane, the two sets of pilots may not be able to hear each other.

National Transportation Safety Board member Todd Inman said at a press conference on Thursday, Jan. 30, that the office has “not reviewed any specific reports.”

American Airlines crash site.Andrew Harnik/Getty

Andrew Harnik/Getty

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Concerns about safety at the airport had beengrowing in recent years, according to a2023NYTinvestigation.

PEOPLE has reached out to the FAA for further information.

source: people.com