The National Transportation Safety Board issued urgent safety recommendations to permanently prohibit helicopter operations on Route 4 between Hains Point and Wilson Bridge when runways 15 and 33 are in use at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.
The recommendations follow the January 29 midair collision between a US Army Sikorsky UH-60L Blackhawk helicopter and PSA Airlines Flight 5342, a CRJ700 regional jet, which killed all 67 people aboard both aircraft.
“We’ve determined that the existing separation distances between helicopter traffic operating on Route 4 and aircraft landing on Runway 33 are insufficient and pose an intolerable risk to aviation safety by increasing the chances of a midair collision at DCA,” NTSB Chairman Jennifer Homendy said during a press briefing on Tuesday.
The investigation reveals that at the maximum altitude of 200 feet, a helicopter operating over the eastern shoreline of the Potomac River would have just 75 feet of vertical separation from an airplane approaching Runway 33.
“Seventy-five feet is very close. That is far too close of a proximity,” Homendy emphasized.
The NTSB’s preliminary report details how the collision occurred at approximately 8:48 p.m. when the helicopter, operating under the callsign PAT25, and the commercial airliner collided over the Potomac River about half a mile southeast of the airport.
The helicopter was conducting a pilot’s annual standardization evaluation with night vision goggles, while Flight 5342 was a scheduled passenger flight from Wichita to Washington DC carrying 64 people.
The investigation uncovers a troubling pattern of near-misses in the same airspace. Data shows at least one Traffic Alert and Collision Avoidance System (TCAS) Resolution Advisory triggered per month from 2011 through 2024 at DCA due to proximity between commercial aircraft and helicopters.
“Between October 2021 and December 2024, there were 15,214 occurrences or close proximity events between commercial airplanes and helicopters in which there was a lateral separation distance of less than one nautical mile and vertical separation of less than 400 feet,” Homendy revealed.
Even more concerning, 85 recorded events involved lateral separation of less than 1,500 feet and vertical separation of less than 200 feet.
In over half of the helicopter encounters reviewed from 2011 through 2024, the helicopter may have been operating above the route altitude restriction. Two-thirds of these events occurred at night.
The NTSB’s first urgent recommendation calls for the FAA to permanently prohibit operations on helicopter Route 4 between Hains Point and the Wilson Bridge when runways 15 and 33 are being used for departures and arrivals.
Recognizing that this route serves vital functions, the NTSB also recommends the FAA designate an alternative helicopter route to facilitate travel between these points when that segment of Route 4 is closed.
“We recognize that a total closure of helicopter Route 4 between Hains Point and the Wilson Bridge during times when Runway 15 and Runway 33 are in use would restrict a vital aviation corridor used for law enforcement activity, Coast Guard patrols and continuity of government operations,” Homendy acknowledged.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has already taken temporary action, restricting helicopter traffic from operating over the Potomac River at DCA until March 31. Homendy commends this swift response but emphasizes the need for a permanent solution.
The preliminary report also notes that helicopter routes established by the FAA have no lateral boundaries, and the Baltimore-Washington helicopter route chart includes no warning for helicopters to operate a defined distance from the shoreline.
The investigation continues to examine several factors, including the helicopter’s altitude reporting systems. The NTSB notes that the helicopter’s combined cockpit voice and flight data recorder does not record date information, time information, or helicopter position information.
Investigators also identified inconsistency in the data which led them to declare the pressure altitude parameter on the Blackhawk as invalid. The NTSB is now determining whether that may have affected other helicopter systems that used pressure altitude as a data source, such as the altimeters.
The NTSB plans to conduct a number of simulations including in the Blackhawk simulator, CRJ simulator, and ATC Tower simulator, all using the accident inputs and conditions. A comprehensive visibility study for both aircraft and tower visibility under night conditions is also planned.
“We’ll conduct additional interviews on helicopter operations and in air traffic control. And the team will continue to examine the radio altimeters, the barometric altimeters and additional electronics,” Homendy said.
The NTSB chairman expressed both anger and devastation about the tragedy.
“It does make me angry but it also makes me feel incredibly devastated for families that are grieving because they lost loved ones,” Homendy said when responding to a reporters question. “It shouldn’t take tragedy like this to occur.”
She added that the data showing previous close encounters “is from a voluntary safety reporting system that FAA could have used any time… to determine that we have a trend here and a problem here and looked at that route. That didn’t occur, which is why we’re taking action today.”
The full investigation is expected to continue for several months before a final report is issued.
View the Aviation Investigation Preliminary Report and the NTSB communication urging the FAA to take immediate action.
Watch the media briefing in its entirety below.
Update – March 12: U.S. Representative Don Beyer, who represents a Northern Virginia district in the U.S. House that includes National Airport (DCA), on Wednesday, March 12 issued the following statement after the release of the National Transportation Safety Board’s (NTSB) preliminary report;
“I thank the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) for their diligent work investigating the tragic accident at National Airport that claimed 67 lives on January 29. The preliminary findings released by the NTSB provide a clearer understanding of the events that led to this horrific incident, including alarming data that raises significant concerns about the airspace and flight routes near National Airport.
“While we await the forthcoming full investigation and report, I am glad to see the Department of Transportation (DOT) and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) take immediate actions to address these initial concerns. We owe it to those we lost and their loved ones to not only find out why this happened, but also to make sure we take all the necessary precautions to enhance aviation safety and ensure this never happens again.”
