Summary
The fatal collision between an American Airlines jet and an Army helicopter near Reagan National Airport has renewed concerns over aviation safety and air traffic controller shortages.
The crash, which left no expected survivors, follows a rise in near misses, with 1,757 runway incursions recorded in 2024.
Experts blame staffing shortages, outdated systems, and increased flight volume for heightened risks.
The FAA is short 3,000 controllers, and training new hires takes years.
Officials, including Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, believe the tragedy was preventable.
So why is the focus on the FAA when the military is the one flying a helicopter into a high volume domestic flight path? Why wouldn’t the focus be on military controls, training, conditions of soldiers, accountability in their opaque system, etc.?
Uhhhhhh they are supposed to communicate with the FAA about their activities and flight paths. I’m guessing the department that works closely with the military so shit like this doesn’t happen was understaffed that day. The FAA controls nonwar military mission flights as well. Pilots in the military aren’t just taking off without 10,000 other steps that needs to be done. One of those tasks is ensuring the FAA knows about all aircraft in the sky! Otherwise, you’ll have widespread panic inside aircraft control centers everytime a military aircraft takes off.
Sure, 100%, and no doubt staffing levels for ATC, and FAA, etc. could have played a causal or correlative role, my point is that there is little digging into the other half of the accident, which for me is pretty strange since a collision involves two parties, systems, processes, etc.