Federal private investigators have raised issues of a capacity for another deadly airplane crash at Reagan National Airport, after a midair crash previously this year killed 67.

The National Transportation Safety Board gave an upgrade on their investigation into the cause of the catastrophe which happened on January 29 in Washington.

An American Airlines jetliner and a Black Hawk military helicopter collided in midair over the Potomac River, killing everybody on board both airplanes.

As part of a preliminary report released on Tuesday, detectives raised concerns of more crashes involving helicopters at the airport.

NTSB chair Jennifer Homendy stated: 'We remain concerned about the considerable potential for future mid-air accident at DCA.'

Her concerns revolve around Transport Secretary Sean Duffy relocating to restrict helicopter traffic around the location, however that is set to stop at the end of the month.

When police, medical or governmental transport helicopters need to use the space civilian planes are stopped from remaining in the exact same location.

Homendy said the NTSB is now recommending that the FAA discover a 'long-term solution' for alternate paths for helicopters when two of the airport's runways are in usage.

Emergency systems respond after a guest airplane clashed with a helicopter in the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington Airport on January 30, 2025 in Arlington, Virginia

Chairman of the National Transportation Safety Bureau (NTSB) Jennifer Homendy talks to reporters about the 29 January mid-air collision

It was likewise exposed on Tuesday that there was alerting signs in the lead up to the lethal catastrophe.

Those penetrating the crash went through 944,179 operations in between October 2021 and December 2024.

It was uncovered that 15,214 'near-miss occasions' of airplanes getting informs about helicopters being in close distance between October 2021 and December 2024.

The NTSB also stated that there were 85 cases where 2 aircraft where laterally split by less than 1,500 feet, and a vertical separation of less than 200 feet.

Homendy included: 'That data from October 2021 through December 2024, (the FAA) might have utilized that info whenever to identify that we have a trend here and a problem here, and looked at that path; that didn't take place, which is why we're acting today. But sadly, people lost lives, and liked ones are grieving.'

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy knocked these findings at a later interview on Tuesday.

Duffy said: 'I believe the concern is when this information is available in how did the FAA not understand. How did they not study the data to state "hello, this is a location, we are having near misses and if we do not alter our ways we are gon na lose lives".'

He added: 'That wasn't done, perhaps there was a concentrate on something aside from safety.'

Duffy would later included when questioned by a reporter about the near misses out on that the data had 'p *** ed him off'.

Pictured: Parts of the wreckage seen being in the Potomac River after Flight 5342 hit an Army Black Hawk helicopter on Wednesday night, killing 67 individuals

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Investigators believe that the helicopter included in the crash may have had inaccurate altitude readings in the minutes before the crash.

The collision most likely happened at an altitude just under 300 feet, as the aircraft descended towards the chopper, which was above its 200-foot limitation for that area.

On Tuesday American Airlines welcomed the report by the NTSB, saying: 'We're grateful for the National Transportation Safety Board's immediate security recommendations to traffic near DCA and for its comprehensive examination.

'We will continue to collaborate carefully with PSA Airlines as it works together as an investigative party member.'

The helicopter pilots might have likewise missed out on part of another communication, when the tower stated the jet was turning toward a different runway, Homendy stated last month.

The helicopter was on a 'check' flight that night where the pilot was going through a yearly test and a test on utilizing night vision safety glasses, Homendy stated.

Investigators think the team was using night vision goggles throughout the flight.

The Army has stated the Black Hawk team was highly experienced, and accustomed to the congested skies around the nation ´ s capital.

At the time of the crash, a single air traffic controller was at the same time keeping an eye on both the helicopter and aircraft traffic.

Those tasks are normally managed in between 2 people from 10am until 9:30 pm, according to an early FAA report seen by The New york city Times.

Those jobs are normally handled in between 2 individuals from 10am until 9:30 pm, according to the report.

Surveillance video drawn from inside the airport recorded the minute the 2 clashed in midair

At the time of the collision, a single air traffic controller was at the same time keeping an eye on both the helicopter and plane traffic. Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport is seen here

After 9:30 pm the tasks are generally integrated and left to one individual as the airport sees less traffic later on in the night.

A supervisor supposedly chose to integrate those duties before the arranged cutoff time however, and allowed one air traffic controller to leave work early.

The FAA report stated that staffing setup 'was not normal for the time of day and volume of traffic'.

Reagan National has been understaffed for several years, with just 19 completely accredited controllers as of September 2023 - well below the target of 30 - according to the most current Air Traffic Controller Workforce Plan submitted to Congress.

The circumstance appeared to have enhanced because then, as a source told CNN the Reagan National control tower was 85 percent staffed with 24 of 28 positions filled.

Chronic understaffing at air traffic control service towers is absolutely nothing new, with widely known causes consisting of high turnover and budget plan cuts.

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In order to fill the spaces, controllers are frequently asked to work 10-hour days, six days a week.

After the release of the report, previous Inspector General of the US Department of Transportation Mary Schiavo deemed the findings as 'uncommon'.

She said: 'This NTSB action is extremely unusual. The release of an emergency suggestion requesting the FAA take instant action, before the completion of the NTSB investigation is unusual.'

The 2 airplane had actually clashed in a huge fireball that was noticeable on dashcams of vehicles driving on highways that snake around the airport, before plunging into the river.

Less than a month later, on February 17, a Delta guest aircraft crashed-landed upside down in chaotic scenes at Toronto Pearson International Airport in Canada.

Miraculously, everybody on board made it through after being suspended upside-down by their seat belts for numerous minutes up until they tentatively started leaving.

The airplane had been heading to Toronto from Minneapolis - Saint Paul International Airport with 76 travelers and 4 crew members on board.

Some 21 people were required to the healthcare facility for treatment to small injuries, and Delta has offered everyone a no-strings $30,000 payout in compensation.

And the plane carnage is continuous - on Sunday, yet another jet crash-landed, this time in a parking area of a suburban Pennsylvania retirement home.

Dramatic footage revealed the Beechcraft A36TC appear in flames in the parking area of Brethren Village in Manheim Township. Five people were rushed to healthcare facility.

Medics, ambulances, and emergency situation lorries hurried to the scene in Lancaster County as flames swallowed up the aircraft and close-by automobiles.

The plane took off as set up on Sunday afternoon, but rapidly asked for to land back on the tarmac due to the fact that its door had opened.

American Airlines