Aviation Safety and FAA Oversight

Internal reports and former Reagan National controller Emily Hanoka say long‑running, systemic safety strains — including overcrowding at DCA (about 800 flights a day and roughly 25 million passengers a year), routine “squeeze play” runway procedures, and dozens of documented near‑collisions — preceded the January 2025 midair collision between American Eagle Flight 5342 and an Army Black Hawk, which some reports say was flying above its permitted altitude. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford say the crash exposed ignored warnings and prompted immediate reforms — from restricting fixed‑wing cross traffic and a major FAA reorganization to new AI risk‑mitigation tools, upgraded helicopter handling protocols, workforce strengthening and a $12.5 billion push to modernize air‑traffic control — as families of victims press for accountability.