• Airline stocks have been plummeting this year on fears of reduced demand.
• They were among the hardest hit by Trump's Wednesday tariff announcements.
• Analysts also expect ticket prices to rise for customers as a result of the sweeping tariffs.

Tariffs are spelling more bad news for airlines and passengers.

Even before Donald Trump's self-styled "Liberation Day" announcement, the big three airline stocks had fallen around a quarter in a month.

Analysts have already warned that airline customers are set to have less spending money while plane ticket prices rise. Morgan Stanley and Bank of America analysts said the effective tariff rate was about double what they expected.

With US companies paying the tariffs on items they import, prices are set to go up for Americans.

"The resulting hit to purchasing power could take real disposable personal income growth in 2Q-3Q into negative territory, and with it the risk that real consumer spending could also contract in those quarters," JPMorgan Chase's chief US economist Michael Feroli wrote in an analyst note.

Vacations aren't a necessity, so are something people can forego when they tighten their purse strings. Cruise and hotel stocks have dipped, too. Corporate travel is expected to drop as well, since the tariffs are designed to incentivize doing business at home.

Higher-than-expected tariffs have exacerbated an already dreary outlook for travel.

Delta Air Lines and United Airlines' share prices have fallen more than a third since the start of the year. American Airlines' is down 44%.

Stocks dipped on Tuesday after Jefferies analysts downgraded American Airlines and Delta Air Lines to Hold ratings.

They said consumer sentiment was at a four-year low and cited "swelling macro uncertainty." In other words, fewer people want to fly because of the state of the economy.

On Monday, Virgin Atlantic executives also warned of softening demand for Americans flying to the UK — although travel in the opposite direction remains at expected levels.

"We think that's quite a natural reaction to the general consumer uncertainty there is in the US at the minute," chief financial officer Oli Byers said in comments reported by several outlets.

The day after the tariffs were announced, the big three airline stocks dropped between 10% and 15% — compared to the broader S&P 500's 5% decline.

Airline ticket prices have been lower this year due to slower demand, but some analysts say they're set to get more expensive.

Airfares set to rise

Tariffs are set to hit planemakers with the costs ultimately being passed down to passengers.

Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg told a Senate hearing Wednesday that 80% of its airplanes are sold to customers outside the US, and a fifth of the production materials are imported.

"Free trade is very important to us," he added.

Morningstar's analyst for aerospace and defense equities, Nicolas Owens, said: "Investors concerned that the new import tariffs might be devastating to US aerospace firms may overestimate the risk."

However, there is also the risk of retaliatory tariffs on exports. Boeing's share price fell more than 10% on Thursday.

While European rival Airbus has an assembly line in Alabama, it would still have to import parts there.

"Obviously there would be an increase of cost and most probably in price for the airlines, and therefore to the end customers," CEO Guillaume Faury said in February.

In a note Thursday, analysts at Vertical Research Partners also warned they expect airfares to get more expensive.

"Ultimately we see these cost increases being passed on to airlines, and the flying public, which logically will have a negative impact on passenger demand […] and airline profits," they wrote.

Business Insider attended a summit at Airbus' headquarters in Toulouse, France, last week. At the summit, executives spoke to reporters ahead of the tariff announcement.

"We are in an industry where I think tariffs will be very, very damaging," Faury said. "Probably more damaging to the US at first glance."

He also pointed to the effects of a 17-year dispute between the US and Europe over subsidies given to Boeing and Airbus, with tariffs imposed as a result.

"It was so bad for everybody that it came to a cease-fire," he said.

Airlines have already taken a hit as Canadians book fewer flights to the US. Europeans are also starting to lose interest in transatlantic travel, the CEO of hotel operator Accor told Bloomberg.

While airlines have yet to see a drop in demand on this route, the looming trade war could change that.

• An American Airlines flight to Tokyo turned back to the US in a 12-hour journey.
• The Boeing 787 U-turned over the Pacific Ocean due to a "maintenance issue."
• It's one of the longest flight diversions this year.

American Airlines passengers spent more than half a day on a plane — only to end up in Texas instead of Tokyo.

Monday's Flight 167 took off from New York's JFK Airport about 11 a.m. ET.

Seven hours into the journey, the Boeing 787 U-turned over the Pacific Ocean — about 900 miles off the western Canadian coastline, per data from Flightradar24.

It then traveled for another five hours, crossing half the US to land at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport shortly after 10 p.m. local time.

The roughly 12-hour trip was only about an hour shy of the average flight time from New York to Tokyo.

One Reddit user who said they were on the flight said there was no meal service on board, "so we've gone 14 hours with only dried snap peas as a snack."

An airline spokesperson told Business Insider the flight was diverted due to "a maintenance issue."

"We never want to disrupt our customers' travel plans, and we are sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused," they added.

Passengers were put up in hotels overnight before the flight departed again the following day.

While spending hours on a diverted flight can be frustrating for passengers, it's typically an easier alternative for the airline than landing at the closest airport.

For example, the flight went past Seattle and Denver — but Dallas is American's main hub. Landing there likely made it easier to reroute passengers, find new crew, and repair any issues with the plane.

Diverted flights can also be costly for airlines, with knock-on effects on their schedules. Data from Flightradar24 shows a return flight from Tokyo to New York was canceled on Tuesday, as was a flight from Dallas to Philadelphia scheduled for the same plane.

The passengers' 12-hour ordeal is among the lengthiest diversions this year.

In February, an American Airlines flight from New York to Delhi landed in Rome after 15 hours, and had to be escorted by Italian fighter jets due to a bomb threat.

Last month, an Air India flight turned back to Chicago after most of its bathrooms stopped working, resulting in a nine-hour flight to nowhere.

• Dozens of flights were in the air heading for Heathrow Airport when it closed due to a power outage.
• Passengers were on board for as long as seven hours before landing back where they started.
• Qantas diverted two flights to Paris and plans to send passengers on a nine-hour bus ride to London.

More than 20 flights turned back to their departure point after London Heathrow Airport closed on Friday due to a power outage.

Cirium, an aviation analytics firm, tracked 36 flights heading to Heathrow that had to divert, with 22 becoming flights to nowhere.

Passengers on United Airlines Flight 14 and Virgin Atlantic Flight 166 were on board for nearly seven hours before landing back where they took off, per data from Flightradar24. Both flights U-turned over the Atlantic Ocean, returning to Newark and Jamaica respectively.

An American Airlines flight from Dallas/Fort Worth made it as far as the Canadian border before turning back in a six-hour ordeal. Another flight from New York, circled seven times over Maine before returning to JFK three hours after departing.

Heathrow is the world's second-busiest airport for passengers flying internationally, meaning the disruption has affected travelers globally.

Japan Airlines Flight 43 and Air India Flight 129 had to return to Tokyo and Mumbai respectively, in six-hour flights to nowhere.

British Airways is Heathrow's largest operator, and Cirium tracked six of its flights that diverted. One returned to San Francisco after six hours, turning around over Manitoba.

Three BA flights were able to go to London Gatwick Airport instead of Heathrow, per Cirium.

Air Canada and JetBlue diverted flights to Labrador's remote Goose Bay Airport, which is primarily used as a military base.

Some passengers coming from Singapore and Perth, Australia were diverted to Paris. Qantas said it would transport people on the two flights to London via bus — a journey of about nine hours.

The chaos is likely to continue across the weekend. Heathrow said it expected "significant disruption over the coming days."

Neil Glynn, a managing director at Alvarez & Marsal, told Business Insider airlines that have spent more money on technology will have an easier time coping with the chaos.

"Digital investment is the all more important for airlines on days like today, and the return on that investment is all the clearer," he said. He pointed to the benefits of communicating with passengers and being able to rebook or re-route them more quickly.

"It is clearly more difficult if the airport is closed, but real-time communication with passengers allows them to change plans early, and likely avoids them traveling to the airport unnecessarily," he said.

"Digital investments should also smoothen the rebooking or even re-routing process, either via alternative London airports or when Heathrow re-opens."

An "engine-related issue" caused American Airlines Flight 1006 to catch fire after landing at Denver International Airport.

• An American Airlines jet caught fire in Denver, and people evacuated with their carry-ons.
• Passengers ignoring safety rules by taking bags can slow evacuations and risk lives.
• People on a Russian plane in 2019 died because some survivors didn't abandon their carry-ons.

Photos of a burning American Airlines jet on Thursday show dozens of evacuating passengers standing on the wing with their bags in tow — breaking one of the most important safety rules.

Flight attendants explain during pre-flight briefings that carry-ons must be left behind during emergencies to ensure a quick evacuation and increase survivability.

Federal regulations require airline cabin crew to be able to deplane everyone within 90 seconds, under the assumption everyone follows crew instructions.

Aviation expert Geoffrey Thomas previously told Business Insider that bag-related bottlenecks could slow the evacuation and waste vital time.

"You've got to get all the passengers out in 90 seconds," he said. "Now, we're seeing evacuations taking six and seven minutes because passengers insist on taking their bags."

Thursday's incident occurred after the crew reported "engine vibrations" en route from Colorado Springs to Dallas/Fort Worth and diverted to Denver. The engine caught fire after landing, prompting the evacuation.

12 people of the 172 on board were transported to the hospital with minor injuries, Denver International Airport said on X.

Evacuating with carry-ons could be life-or-death

A slowed aircraft evacuation could lead to more injuries or even fatalities, and there's a precedent for this life-or-death concern.

In 2019, a Russian airliner crash-landed and caught fire in Moscow, killing 41 of the 78 passengers and crew.

Many of the survivors were seen fleeing the plane with their carry-ons, which aviation experts say likely stalled the evacuation and led to a higher death toll.

The opposite happened in January 2024, when a Japan Airlines jetliner collided with a smaller plane on the Tokyo runway.

All 379 people on that aircraft — which was carrying five times the number of people as the Russian plane — survived. Aviation experts say part of the reason was because passengers abandoned their bags.

The Delta Air Lines crash-landing in Toronto in February also saw some passengers evacuating with carry-ons and flight attendants telling them to leave their stuff behind.

A week later, another Delta plane filled with smoke. Again, evacuated passengers were seen with their bags. Everyone lived in both cases.

Still, history shows not everyone is as lucky.

Air travel remains relatively very safe, and fatal crashes are still extremely rare, despite the uptick in crashes and near-misses in recent months.

When incidents do happen, and a speedy evacuation is necessary, it's imperative you listen to the flight attendants and leave your personal items behind.

Stuff can be replaced — lives can't.

• American Airlines Flight 1006 was seen engulfed in smoke at Denver International Airport.
• The FAA said the plane's engine caught fire while it was taxiing to the gate.
• All 172 passengers and six crew were evacuated, the airline said.

An American Airlines plane caught fire at Denver International Airport on Thursday.

The Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement that American Airlines Flight 1006 landed safely in Denver after the crew reported "engine vibrations."

"After landing and while taxiing to the gate an engine caught fire and passengers evacuated the aircraft using the slides," the FAA said.

The Boeing 737-800 was en route from Colorado Springs Airport to Dallas Fort Worth International Airport.

The airline said in a statement that Flight 1006 "experienced an engine-related issue" after landing and taxiing to the gate.

"The 172 customers and six crew members deplaned and are being relocated to the terminal," the statement said.

A representative for Denver International Airport told local news outlet KDVR that Flight 1006 was emitting "visible smoke."

The airport wrote on X on Thursday night that "12 people were transported to local hospitals with minor injuries."

Alexandria Cullen, press assistant for Congressman Gabe Evans, shared footage of the plane in smoke in an X post on Thursday and said her mother was on the flight.

A female passenger described smelling a "weird burning plastic smell" to CBS Colorado, saying that "everybody then started screaming and saying there was a fire."

The woman's father, who was at the back of the plane, told the outlet that people in front of him "started screaming when they saw the flames, and then the people started rushing toward the rear to get out, and they were getting very, very panicky."

Her mother, who was seated near the wing, told the outlet she was "very grateful" the incident happened on the ground. "Had this happened in the air, I don't think I'd be standing here telling you this story."

• Airlines CEOs are adjusting their forecasts amid economic uncertainty and softened consumer demand.
• Natural disasters and air crashes in January and February haven't helped.
• Shares of American, Delta, Southwest, and United are all trading down this year.

At the start of the year, airline CEOs raved about what they thought would be a strong year of profits, thanks to booming travel demand and the popularity of premium seats to Europe.

But an unrelenting series of natural disasters, tragic crashes, and economic uncertainties have dampened their mood and sent stock prices careening.

Delta CEO Ed Bastian referred to the recent events as a "parade of horribles" at an investor conference hosted by JPMorgan on Tuesday. He said the airline will reduce its first-quarter revenue outlook by $500 million, or by about 4%.

American Airlines and Southwest Airlines have similarly slashed their earnings forecast for the first quarter, citing declining demand, safety concerns, and declining government travel.

"If [the wildfires and snow storms] were the only two issues, we probably wouldn't be talking about major guidance adjustments," American CEO Robert Isom said at the JPMorgan conference.

United didn't adjust its guidance, but CEO Scott Kirby said the airline expects to land at the lower end of its forecast. The airline already said it could lose millions due to declining government travel following the recent mass federal firings.

Delta shares are down about 23% year-to-date, while United is experiencing a nearly 24% slump. Year-to-date performances of Southwest and American are down about 10% and 35%, respectively.

Airlines took a hit from unusually powerful natural disasters

2025 kicked off with a series of deadly wildfires in Los Angeles. These unusual January fires took place outside the area's normal April to October fire season and temporarily paralyzed commercial air travel in Southern California.

That was followed by two major snow and ice storms that swept across the Southeast US — including Florida — in successive weeks, disrupting thousands of flights.

According to Bastian, January's bad weather and natural disasters did about "$100 million of damage" to Delta's finances. Jordan said Southwest was similarly impacted by the LA fires.

Isom said at the conference that the Sun Belt weather had an "inordinate impact on American," noting the operational disruptions caused by the January storm to the carrier's mega hubs in Dallas/Fort Worth and Charlotte.

Two crashes made fliers nervous and dampened flight bookings

After weather disruptions, the deadly midair collision between an American flight and a military Blackhawk helicopter in January set the downturn in motion.

"January actually looked pretty good," Bastian said at the conference. "The revenue environment was pretty strong. The booking trends were healthy. Then we had the tragic American Airlines incident."

Delta saw growth in corporate travel and bookings "immediately stall" following the crash, it said.

Southwest COO Andrew Watterson said the airline also experienced "suppressed bookings" in the days following the crash.

Before anything could recover, a Delta flight crash-landed in Toronto in February.

Even though the crash did not result in any fatalities, the compounding effect of the two back-to-back incidents — as well as a near-miss in Chicago and several other accidents involving smaller airplanes — negatively affected consumer confidence in air travel.

Despite softened bookings in the first quarter, Isom said he does not believe the DC crash will have a long-term impact on the US airline industry or American.

Recession fears have dampened demand

Waves of mass layoffs, a tumbling stock market, and a trade war have led some corporate and price-sensitive economy fliers to hold off on travel.

"We talked to all of our corporate customers, and everyone is ready to go," Bastian said. "But in the face of the amount of macro uncertainty, they're pulling back a little bit on travel, not in an organized manner, just kind of waiting to see what's going to transpire."

Delta and United said they plan to cut capacity through the summer to align with demand. United said it's retiring 21 aircraft ahead of schedule, saving the airline $100 million this year on engine overhauls.

Soft consumer demand has been exacerbated by waning travel bookings from the US government thanks to the mass layoffs and dramatic cost cutting measures implemented by the Trump Administration and the so-called Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE.

"Government is 2% of our business," United CEO Scott Kirby said. "Government adjacent, all the consultants and contractors are probably another 2% to 3%; that's running down 50% right now."

Isom said American's historically profitable presence at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in DC has taken a particular hit, but added the airline's government-contracted business accounts for only 1.5% of its total revenue.

Airlines are still optimistic about the year

The first quarter of the year is generally the weakest financial period for airlines. So, it's common to see airlines report losses or lower-than-expected profits in Q1, even during banner years.

United, Delta, Southwest, and American all say they remain hopeful of a turnaround, especially going into the higher-demand spring and summer months.

"Good news is that international, long haul, Hawaii, premium all remain really strong," Kirby said at the conference.

Isom said American is "nimble" in its ability to adjust to economic and demand changes and will benefit from its renewed ticket distribution strategy that it expects will earn back high-paying corporate customers.

Jordan said Southwest is optimistic about its future profitability amid an operational shake-up that will now charge for things like bags and assigned seats.

Bastian said continued premium demand, lower fuel prices, profits from its credit card, and an expectation that much of the quarter-one hiccups are temporary have sewn optimism for the full year.

"Even though we just went through a little bit of a parade of horribles, we will still be just as profitable as we were in the prior year," Bastian said of Delta's first-quarter results. "We anticipate margins continuing to expand, even with the slower start to the year."

• An American Eagle passenger has been charged with assault following an incident on a flight last week.
• Asterius Rulamka is accused of hitting another traveler and swinging at a flight attendant.
• He said he traveled to Washington, DC, to speak to Trump, the affidavit said.

A man was charged with assault after hurting a flight attendant and another traveler on a flight last week.

Asterius Rulamka was a passenger on American Eagle Flight 5574 from Wichita to Washington, DC on March 5, an FBI special agent said in an affidavit.

As the flight was on its final descent, Rulamka went to the rear of the aircraft and started talking to one of the flight attendants, per the affidavit.

It adds that he started yelling at the crew member and threatened to "fuck him up" — as several passengers began filming the altercation on their phones.

Rulamka is then said to have noticed this, grabbing a passenger's arms and saying he was "going to fuck him up" as well.

The affidavit alleges he then took the passenger's hat and glasses before repeatedly hitting him, leaving him with bruising and a bloodshot eye.

It adds that the flight attendant got up to help and asked several passengers to get involved too, while another cabin crew member also provided assistance.

At one point, Rulamka swung at the flight attendant, but he managed to dodge him — although he suffered a small cut to his finger and a broken fingernail, per the affidavit.

It says Rulamka then started running up and down the cabin until three passengers and the flight attendants were able to restrain him in a seat for landing.

After the flight arrived at Washington Reagan National Airport, Rulamka said he had come to the capital to speak to President Donald Trump because he was "mad."

The defendant also has pending immigration proceedings.

He was charged with assault by striking, beating, or wounding. If found guilty, he could face a fine or a sentence of up to one year.

Law enforcement responded to "a disruptive customer" when the flight arrived at Regan National, an American Airlines spokesperson said in an emailed statement. "We do not tolerate violence, and thank our team members for their professionalism."

• A mid-flight bomb hoax led Italy's air force to scramble jets to escort an American Airlines plane.
• The Boeing 787 was flying from New York to Delhi when the threat occurred.
• Italy's Aeronautica Militare released a series of photos of the incident unfolding.

American Airlines passengers had a whirlwind journey after a bomb threat saw their flight turn around, and fighter jets scrambled to escort the plane.

The airline said the "possible security concern" was later found to be "non-credible."

Saturday evening's Flight 292 from New York to India's capital, New Delhi, U-turned over the Caspian Sea — more than 10 hours after taking off, according to data from Flightradar24.

It then spent around four hours going back toward Italy, where the country's air force scrambled two Eurofighter jets.

In a press release, the Aeronautica Militare said it escorted the Boeing 787 to Rome Fiumicino Airport after a "bomb alert."

It also shared images of the Eurofighters following the airliner, as well as a video.

American Airlines said the flight landed safely in Rome, and "law enforcement inspected and cleared the aircraft to re-depart."

"Safety and security are our top priorities and we apologize to our customers for the inconvenience," it added.

The Boeing 787 landed in Rome around 4 p.m. local time on Sunday. The same plane is scheduled to fly from Rome to New Delhi at 6 a.m. ET on Tuesday, per Flightradar24.

A senior official briefed on the matter told ABC News a bomb threat was received by email.

Protocol at Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport required an inspection before the plane could land there, American Airlines said.

The incident is the latest in a string of bomb threats on planes flying to or in India in recent months.

India's deputy civil aviation minister, Murlidhar Mohol, said that as of mid-November, there had been 999 hoax bomb threats in the country in 2024.

More than 500 of those were received across two weeks, and 12 people were arrested.

Last October, Singapore's Air Force scrambled two F-15s to escort an Air India Express flight, which landed safely.

The same month, an Air India flight from New Delhi to Chicago made an emergency landing in Canada's Nunavut territory after another bomb threat.

Were you a passenger on this flight? Get in touch with this reporter at psyme@businessinsider.com.

• The Biden administration opened a review into making airlines pay cash compensation to passengers.
• Airlines for America is asking the Trump administration to end this.
• The lobby group says it wouldn't provide any economic incentive and may increase ticket prices.

A trade group for major airlines called on the Trump administration to end a review into cash compensation for delayed passengers.

Airlines for America (A4A), which represents 10 carriers including Delta, American, and United, wrote to the Department of Transportation on Monday.

The review was set up by the Biden administration and started work in December. It is seeking consumer comments on whether passengers should get cash compensation for disruptions where the airline is at fault.

It suggested airlines should be required to pay $200 to $300 for domestic delays of at least three hours, $375 to $525 for six-hour delays, and $750 to $775 for nine-hour delays. Similar rules are in place in Canada and Europe.

However, A4A is fighting back against the proposed rules.

The lobby group warned that airlines are likely to raise ticket prices and cancel more flights in case of severe delays. "Airlines do not need further incentive to provide quality service," the letter stated.

The group's airlines already give automatic refunds if a passenger chooses not to rebook a flight, the letter said. If passengers do choose to rebook at no additional cost, the airlines provide meals or cash or vouchers for meals, hotel accommodations, and/or ground transportation.

It also said the regulations would go beyond the Department for Transportation's statutory authority.

In December, then-Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said compensation rules for delays "would change the economic incentive in a way that motivates airlines to do more."

The Biden administration made several efforts to issue new rules it said would give passengers more rights.

Last April, it required airlines to promptly give passengers automatic cash refunds when owed.

And in early January, the DoT fined JetBlue $2 million for operating chronically delayed flights.

In Monday's letter, A4A said a rule requiring cash compensation would be "directly contrary to President Trump's regulatory policies and directives" — noting his policy to remove unnecessary regulations.

The DoT did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

• A 64-year-old United Airlines employee was seriously injured on Saturday.
• He was driving an aircraft tug which collided with an American Eagle plane that had just landed.
• The tug flipped over and pinned the driver underneath, Chicago police said.

A man was seriously injured on Saturday after an aircraft tug collided with a plane that had just landed.

The incident happened at Chicago O'Hare Airport around 7 p.m. local time.

Chicago police said the tug flipped over after colliding with the wing of the plane, pinning the driver underneath the tug, CBS News reported.

The injured man is 64 years old and was taken to hospital in critical condition with injuries to his head and lower body, it added.

A Bombardier CRJ-200 operated by Air Wisconsin had just landed from Michigan's Kalamazoo/Battle Creek International Airport, the Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement.

Air Wisconsin is a regional subsidiary of American Airlines, operating under American Eagle.

Passengers safely deplaned and were bused to the terminal, the FAA added.

"Nothing is more important than the safety of our customers and team members, and we are reviewing this incident," an American Airlines spokesperson said in a statement.

The tug driver is a United Airlines employee, the airline said in a statement also shared with several outlets.

"We are ensuring he receives any necessary support and care," it added.

United did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider outside of US working hours.

The incident is the latest in a series of aviation incidents in the US.

On January 28, a 66-year-old American Airlines employee died after being hit by an airport ramp vehicle at North Carolina's Charlotte Douglas International Airport, NBC News reported.

The following day saw the country's first major airline crash in nearly 16 years, when an American Airlines plane collided with an Army Black Hawk helicopter in midair above the Potomac River in Washington, DC.

• A passenger jet collided with a Black Hawk helicopter near Reagan Airport on Wednesday, January 29.
• The collision may have occurred due to limited visibility and night vision goggle use, says former pilot Mark Stephens.
• He reminds nervous passengers that flying in an airplane is still safer statistically than a car.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Mark Stephens, a 68-year-old retired Delta Air Lines pilot who completed his career as an Airbus A350 captain in November 2021. It has been edited for length and clarity.

I was a Delta pilot for 30 years, and I landed at Reagan Washington National Airport many times throughout my career.

There are two airports on the East Coast that I consider particularly dangerous: LaGuardia and Reagan. Due to heavy air traffic, both airports handle takeoffs and landings on intersecting runways at very high speeds. It's incredibly close quarters.

One suggestion I have for safety is to limit the size of the planes flying in. The American Airlines flight was small — around 60 seats — which is much harder to see than a larger plane like an Airbus A320.

They could require the airplanes flying in to be bigger and have fewer of them, but that's unlikely because it would reduce the number of places airlines can fly.

Here's what I think may have happened at DCA

What might've happened on January 29 when a passenger jet collided with a Black Hawk helicopter near Reagan is that neither of the aircraft saw the other.

In a Visual Flight Rules (VFR) situation, a set of regulations governing how pilots should operate in clear weather conditions, the Black Hawk could be as close as a few hundred feet to commercial planes. The air traffic controller would've pointed out the passenger airplane to the helicopter, whose pilot would've said, "Roger, we'll maintain visual separation."

At close range, the pilot in the helicopter with night vision goggles may not see the other plane because the goggles narrow your field. Also, at night, depth perception and your peripherals are reduced. I don't think the helicopter pilot ever saw the airplane they hit.

Another possibility is that the Traffic Collision Avoidance System (TCAS) is not fully effective below 700 feet, the approximate altitude of the crash

TCAS is a vital tool, and it saved me once. It warns pilots of possible collisions and gives automated instructions to prevent crashes.

One time, I was flying a Delta commercial plane out of Atlanta at 16,000 feet, and another plane, flown by a civilian pilot, was approaching. I was flying this departure on course, at altitude, and we got a TCAS alert.

The other pilot was descending in altitude. I'd seen him above me earlier but could no longer see him. The VSI, or vertical speed indicator, gives you a little green range where you need to get the airplane down to avoid hitting the other plane. Right at the last minute, my TCAS instructed me to descend 2,500 feet a minute.

Because he was coming down toward us, we had to go below him. We pushed it aggressively to get the plane flying down 2,500 feet a minute and got to negative G-force, so the flight attendants were in the air until I got back into positive G-force.

At that last second, I looked up and saw him go by. We could've crashed if the TCAS system hadn't worked. It saved my life coming out of Atlanta and everyone on that airplane.

I don't think the collision on Wednesday was a TCAS failure, though. TCAS doesn't provide solutions at low altitudes as aircraft are landing for safety reasons.

I retired in November 2021

I hate to say it, but changes in the procedures of airliners and helicopters happen after blood is involved. For example, after September 11, cockpits were locked down with bulletproof doors so hijackers couldn't commandeer the plane.

I expect that after this, the military won't allow night vision goggles around commercial airports within five miles.

For those scared to fly, I used to tell nervous passengers that if they ride in a car, they are so much safer statistically on an airplane because cars kill way more people.

• The American Airlines jet that crashed in DC was given a runway change minutes before the tragedy.
• Audio tapes show the military helicopter had the passenger plane "in sight" before the collision.
• The NTSB will look at pilot and air traffic control actions when investigating the crash.

In the minutes before an American Airlines flight crashed into the Potomac River in Washington, DC, on Wednesday, an air traffic controller requested a last-minute runway change.

The regional jet, operated by PSA Airlines, was descending over Virginia and headed for the north-facing "Mount Vernon Visual Runway 1" approach at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.

Pilots had confirmed their approach to air traffic controllers at the airport tower around 8:42 p.m.

Moments later, a controller reported high crosswinds on Runway 1 and asked the pilots to shift to the intersecting runway.

"Bluestreak 5342 Washington Tower winds are 320 at 17, gusts 25. Can you take Runway 33?" the controller said. Bluestreak is the call sign for PSA flights.

The pilots agreed, and within minutes, the plane collided with an Army Black Hawk helicopter. All 67 people on board both aircraft died.

Business Insider reviewed official briefings, flight data, and air traffic control audio recordings to piece together what happened before tragedy struck.

The plane and helicopter's final moments of flight

Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport is an extremely busy airspace, but officials said it was a largely normal night of flying. Winds were gusty — something pilots are trained for — and the skies were clear.

The American flight had been approaching from the south, following the Potomac River along a well-known path for pilots and frequent flyers of the DC area.

The narrow corridor helps separate traffic from highly secure airspace around the White House, Pentagon, and other government buildings.

Seconds before the American flight agreed to change its path, another PSA jet responded to the same request to shift to Runway 33 as "unable," meaning it was not in a position to make the adjustment.

That flight, from Montgomery, Alabama, landed on Runway 1 as planned and continued to its gate.

The PSA pilots of flight 5342 accepting the change is not unusual. Runway 33 is a shorter strip that faces Northwest and can handle a regional aircraft like the Bombardier CRJ700 the pilots were flying.

The switch-up required the plane to move from its north-facing heading toward the Potomac's east bank before swinging back over the river to land.

At approximately 8:43 p.m., flight 5342 was cleared to land.

At the same time as the crew of flight 5342 was prepping for the new runway, an Army Black Hawk helicopter was making its way south along the river's eastern shore, following a standard, published path known as "Route 4."

Several of these channels cut through the DC area, allowing military aircraft to coexist with commercial traffic in and out of airports.

At about 8:47 p.m., a controller asked the helicopter, call sign PAT25, if they had "the CRJ in sight" and to pass behind it. The CRJ refers to the regional CRJ700 aircraft operated by PSA.

The helicopter pilot confirmed that they had the "aircraft in sight" and requested "visual separation."

Just seconds later, gasps from controllers can be heard on the audio tapes. ATC began canceling flight landings and diverting planes from National.

DC fire chief John Donnelly said emergency vehicles were on the scene by 8:58 p.m. to begin rescue operations.

Human factors are just one consideration for investigators

At a briefing Thursday, officials from the National Transportation Safety Board said teams will examine human factors as they piece together a complete picture of the crash.

"They will study the crew performance and all of the actions and factors that might be involved in human error, including fatigue, medication, medical histories, training, workload, equipment design, and work environment," NTSB member Todd Inman said. They'll also be combing through the wreckage and other evidence for clues as to what went wrong.

A preliminary FAA report obtained by the New York Times and others said staffing at National's ATC tower was "not normal" at the time of the crash. The outlet reported that the controller was handling the duties of two people, including directing helicopters in the area and passenger planes landing and taking off.

Inman said during a Friday press conference that an air traffic controller group will be conducting interviews over the next several days for the NTSB's investigation.

The NTSB official added that the black boxes from both aircraft, which will provide key insights into the moments leading up to the collision, were recovered.

Brian Alexander, a military helicopter pilot and a partner at aviation accident firm Kreindler & Kreindler, told BI that the nighttime conditions, many aircraft lights, and busy skies may have contributed to the catastrophe.

"There was another jet on final, a couple of other jets on final, and it's conceivable the helicopter pilot was watching the wrong aircraft," he said, emphasizing that was speculation at this point.

An airline pilot previously told BI that flying in and out of National was like "threading a needle" due to the highly restricted corridors and heavy traffic, including low-flying helicopters.

Sen. Tammy Duckworth, a former Black Hawk pilot, told reporters that military pilots generally wouldn't talk directly to PSA pilots on the radio, but "everyone's listening on the same frequency."

She said the PSA plane would know that the Black Hawk was in the area but would be relying on ATC as the intermediary.

"Did one of the aircraft stray away latitude, sideways in the airspace from the route that they were supposed to be on? Was the Black Hawk higher than the 200 feet?" Duckworth said. "These are all things that the accident investigators would be looking at."

The NTSB said its preliminary report is expected to be published within 30 days.

• A jet operated by American Airlines collided with a Black Hawk helicopter in Washington, DC.
• Investigators on Thursday said they recovered the black boxes from the passenger jet.
• Black boxes can provide key data from moments before the impact.

Investigators recovered the recording devices, or black boxes, from one of the aircraft involved in Wednesday night's midair crash near the Reagan Washington National Airport.

A spokesperson for the National Transportation Safety Board, which is overseeing the probe into the crash, told Business Insider in an email that the "cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder" from the Bombardier CRJ700 airplane operated by American Airlines was recovered.

"The recorders are at the NTSB labs for evaluation," the spokesperson said.

Black boxes, despite their name, are actually bright orange. They provide key data that can help investigators determine what happened in the moments before the impact.

The cockpit voice recorder "records radio transmissions and sounds in the cockpit, such as the pilot's voices and engine noises," according to the NTSB. "The other, the Flight Data Recorder (FDR), monitors parameters such as altitude, airspeed and heading."

A flight data recorder can hold up to 24 hours of information while a cockpit voice recorder stores up to the last two hours of audio, NTSB wrote.

The black boxes themselves are stored inside reinforced shells that can withstand temperatures of up to 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit for up to 30 minutes and be submerged in 20,000 feet of water, BI previously reported.

A transmitter attached to the flight data recorder allows investigators to find the black boxes, but finding an aircraft that is submerged in a large body of water can still be difficult.

When the Lion Air Boeing 737 Max 8 crashed into the Java Sea in October 2018, killing 189 people on the flight, black box data recovered by investigators revealed how the two pilots struggled to maintain control of the plane as the aircraft was repeatedly sent in a nose-dive position.

The District of Columbia Fire and Emergency Medical Services Department said in an X post on Thursday evening that authorities will conduct "additional searches to locate aircraft components, to support the investigation, and begin operations to salvage the aircraft."

"Overnight, boats will remain on scene for security and surface searches from local, state, and federal regional partners," the agency said.

The collision between a passenger jet and a military helicopter occurred in one of the most congested airspaces in the US.

Sixty-seven people — including four crew members and 60 passengers aboard the CRJ700 and three Black Hawk crew members — were presumed dead.

For years, aviation experts have warned of the risks of midair collisions amid air traffic controller staffing shortages and an increasingly congested airspace.

• The US Army Black Hawk that collided with an American Airlines flight was training on a familiar flight path.
• The 12th Aviation Battalion frequently navigates Washington DC airspace for VIP transport.
• Pilots were flying with night vision goggles and are trained to deal with those challenges.

The US Army crew of a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter that fatally collided with an American Airlines passenger jet on Wednesday was on a routine training flight on a well-known flight path at the time of the incident, an Army official said Thursday.

Jonathan Koziol, a retired Army chief warrant officer aviator with nearly three decades of military flight experience, said during a media roundtable this flight would have likely been deemed "low risk," not medium or high risk.

Such designations are required elements of pre-flight risk assessments and briefings to military mission approval authorities and take into account variables like weather, mission type, and potential hazards. Koziol, the Headquarters Department of the Army Aviation Directorate Chief of Staff, was not involved in flight operation or oversight.

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said earlier in the day that the flight was "routine" and conducted along a "standard" corridor. The flight was along Route 4, a commonly used flight path, and "should not have been a problem," Koziol said.

Crews from the Army's 12th Aviation Battalion, based in Ft. Belvoir, Virginia, are well acquainted with Washington, DC and the surrounding areas, said Koziol. Much of this unit's mission includes ferrying government and military VIPs throughout the National Capital Region (NCR) and being ready to move officials during crises.

Speaking of the Black Hawk's flight path, Koziol said "this is a relatively easy corridor to fly because you're flying down the center of the river."

He said that the dark river flight path, with urban lights on either side to act as informal guardrails, makes the task simple for pilots. The battalion's Black Hawk was also equipped with an in-flight map, meaning the pilots could track their position throughout the flight.

"You have the darkness of the river, and you have the lights on either side of you and obviously the rotating beacon on Reagan National to point out the airfield and all the traffic on it for them to know exactly where they're at," he said.

There are several routes for helicopters in the NCR which government aircraft traverse daily and includes airspace that is off-limits to non-approved aircraft, including areas near the Pentagon, White House, National Mall, and Naval Observatory.

Each flight requires coordination with surrounding air traffic control, including the Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, which assigns each flight a four-digit tracking number to chart its movements. Within the aviation unit, flights are meticulously planned for and managed, Koziol said.

Koziol said the Black Hawk pilots were training with night vision goggles, which can cut down a wearer's peripheral vision and impact depth perception. Soldiers train regularly with these capabilities to limit the impact.

"They are helpful at night, obviously, and in an urban environment, they're still useful," Koziol said. City lights can make seeing with night vision more difficult, but flying over the river where the Black Hawk was shouldn't have posed any problems with light, he said.

All three crew members, two pilots and a crew chief, were experienced aviators, he said. Both pilots had at least 1500 combined flight hours between them. One pilot served as the flight commander and instructor, overseeing an annual training requirement for the second pilot, who held 500 hours and had previously served as a flight commander.

The cause of Wednesday's deadly crash, in which there were no survivors, is unknown and under investigation.

• An American Airlines flight collided with a helicopter, raising questions about air traffic control.
• Sen. Tammy Duckworth, a former Black Hawk pilot, said military and civilian pilots usually do not speak directly to each other.
• The FAA faces a shortage of controllers, impacting high-traffic areas like Washington DC.

The crash of an American Airlines flight in Washington, DC, has renewed anxiety about air-traffic control staffing and procedures at US airports, especially in crowded airspaces.

As investigators began to piece together how a military helicopter collided with the regional jet, questions swirled about communication between the pilots and Reagan National Airport's control tower.

Sen. Tammy Duckworth, an ex-Army Black Hawk helicopter pilot, told reporters that military aircraft usually do not talk directly to commercial pilots, as ATC is the responsible intermediary.

"Everybody's listening on the same frequency," she said, adding that the American flight that crashed would have been aware of the Black Hawk helicopter in the skies. "You are listening to instructions from ATC. ATC is telling you what to do."

Duckworth said an FAA briefing involving ATC tapes revealed the helicopter pilots were told about the passenger plane, and the crew confirmed "at least twice" that they had the jet in sight before the crash.

She added that the American flight was cleared to land and would have had the "right of way" and that the Black Hawk was told to pass behind. The flight was in visual flight conditions, meaning the helicopter would be visually searching for the plane.

"They would be looking up to try to find this aircraft, pick it out of the sky as it's coming in for a landing," she said.

According to the Federal Aviation Administration, some military and civil aircraft, if equipped, can talk to each other using specific emergency frequencies. This is usually reserved for distress situations where immediate communication is necessary. It's unclear if the Black Hawk was equipped.

"[The Black Hawk's] flight path should have been hugging the east bank of the Potomac River, so they should not have been within the flight path of that landing aircraft," she said. "Did one of the aircraft stray away latitude, sideways in the airspace from the route that they were supposed to be on?"

National Transportation Safety Board member Todd Inman said the DC area is a unique environment for helicopters and that the Black Hawk was transitioning zones at the time of the crash. ATC is one of the "human factors" the agency will examine as part of its investigation, he said.

Air traffic control is a complex system with many moving parts and no room for errors

The national air traffic system in the US is immense in both size and complexity, 14,000 air traffic controllers handle upwards of 45,000 flights a day across 29 million miles of airspace.

It's an intricate network that includes hundreds of regional and area control centers, each responsible for a specific piece of airspace.

A pilot flying from San Francisco to Washington, DC, for example, could interact with more than 20 different controllers during the flight.

The job is infamous for its high stress and heavy workload, which can involve managing upwards of a dozen flights at a time.

These stressors are amplified for airports like Ronald Reagan National. The airport has strict flight paths and altitude restrictions. It handles more than 25 million passengers a year and is located in highly trafficked and highly controlled airspace, as it is near the White House, Pentagon, and other government buildings.

The airport has seen multiple near misses recently, including a Southwest Airlines flight that was instructed to cross the same runway on which a JetBlue plane was starting its take-off.

A month later, an American Airlines flight was cleared for takeoff at the same time another plane was given the go-ahead to land on an intersecting runway.

Controllers working the airspace in and around Reagan National also have to handle an extraordinary amount of private and military aircraft that operate in the area.

The situation is exacerbated by a shortage of around 3,000 air traffic controllers, which the FAA has worked to address with plans to hire 1,800 controllers in 2024 and 2,000 this year.

• Aviation experts have warned about the risk of a passenger aircraft collision for years.
• They cite air traffic controller shortages and airspace congestion as safety risks.
• Wednesday's crash is the first complete-loss US airline accident since 2009.

Pilots and aviation workers have sounded alarm bells for years about the risks of midair collisions. Those fears became a reality on Wednesday when an American Airlines flight collided with a helicopter near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport near Washington, DC, with 67 people presumed dead.

Brian Alexander, a military helicopter pilot and a partner at the aviation accident law firm Kreindler & Kreindler, told Business Insider that a shortage of air traffic controllers and increasing airspace congestion have affected safety.

"Our whole air traffic control system has been blinking red, screaming at us that we've we've got it overloaded," he said. "The intense inadequacy of the staffing and the overwork of the controllers is palpable."

He said the US should invest in more airport technology to help controllers and pilots.

Anthony Brickhouse, a professor at the College of Aviation at Embry-Riddle, also cited increased flight congestion as a significant safety risk at airports nationwide. He said he wasn't surprised a crash like this one happened.

"We've had so many close calls with runway incursions and commercial flights almost colliding, and when something repeats over and over again, we call that a trend," he said. "We've been trending in this direction for two or three years now, and unfortunately, tonight, it happened."

He said that air traffic control actions and aircraft communications will be a significant focus of the investigation.

Washington National is among the busiest and most restricted airspaces in the US. A US pilot previously told BI that flying in the area is like "threading a needle."

Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger, the pilot who successfully landed a plane on the Hudson River in 2009 with no fatalities, told The New York Times on Wednesday that the DC airport has dated technology.

"It hasn't changed much since then," he said, referring to the airport's construction in the 1930s. "Of course, we've added technology to it. But a lot of the technology is old."

Despite the collision, experts say flying is still very safe, with thousands of planes taking off and landing safely every day.

President Donald Trump said in a Thursday press conference that he would not hesitate to fly.

"Flying is very safe," he added. "We have the safest flying anywhere in the world, and we'll keep it that way."

The US has been battling near misses for years

Wednesday's collision between a regional jet and a military Black Hawk helicopter comes after a string of near misses in recent years, including close calls in New York City and Austin in 2023.

These near misses prompted the Federal Aviation Administration to create a safety review committee to examine their causes and recommend solutions. In November 2023, the committee recommended increased staffing, added funding to enable continued FAA safety oversight, and investing in airport technology.

Several planes got too close for comfort at Washington National this past spring, followed by another near-miss in Nashville in September, all spurring investigations.

Brickhouse said that given the past few years of close calls, not enough changes have been made to prevent planes from colliding.

"If you continually have near misses and changes aren't made, eventually you will have a tragedy," he said. "For years, I've been saying to everyone who will listen that the next major accident will be something in the airport area involving a collision."

In October, the FAA launched an audit into runway incursion risks at the US's busiest airports to identify "potential gaps in procedures, equipment, and processes" and recommend safety actions. The audit was expected to be completed in early 2025.

The audit came shortly after the FAA said in September that it had exceeded its controller hiring goal for the 2024 fiscal year but was still short about 3,000 personnel.

The concept of "blood priority" is likely to emerge in the aftermath of Wednesday's crash. In aviation safety, this means that needed changes will not be implemented until after a major accident and deaths occur — despite US safety officials pushing to be a more proactive industry than a reactive one.

"We've had to learn important lessons literally with blood too often, and we had finally gotten beyond that, to where we could learn from incidents, and not accidents," Sullenberger told the Times.

First complete-loss crash of a US airliner since 2009

Wednesday's tragedy is the first time a US airline has experienced a fatal, total loss of aircraft since 2009 when Colgan Air Flight 3407 crashed into a house in Buffalo, New York. The 49 people on board and one person on the ground died.

A pilot's incorrect response to the plane's stall warning was eventually blamed for the crash, with fatigue cited as a contributing factor.

"After a 15-year unprecedented run of zero United States air carrier crashes, that streak has ended with this tragic crash, and the safety clock begins again a new run," Kathleen Bangs, an aviation safety analyst and a former pilot, told BI.

Another crash in 2013 on US soil resulted in fatalities when the South Korean carrier Asiana Airlines crashed while landing in San Francisco.

The American crash marks the third fatal accident globally since December. An Azerbaijan Airlines Embraer plane crashed midflight on Christmas Day, likely the result of being inadvertently hit by a Russian air-defense system. Thirty-eight people died, including the two pilots, while 29 passengers survived.

A few days later, a Boeing 737 operated by South Korean carrier Jeju Airlines crashed during landing, killing 179 people. The investigation into that crash is ongoing.

• A Black Hawk helicopter collided with an American Airlines flight during training.
• The Black Hawk, a versatile military aircraft, is used for various operations.
• The Black Hawk has millions of flight hours logged and is known as a "workhorse" aircraft.

The US Army UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter that collided with an American Airlines flight Wednesday evening is one of the most popular and recognizable helicopters in the US military, with variants of the aircraft serving in a range of roles.

Here's what you need to know about the Black Hawk.

What are Black Hawks used for?

The Black Hawk, which is made by Lockheed subsidiary Sikorsky Aircraft, is known as a military "workhorse" because of its versatility. It's used for battlefield medical evacuations, search and rescue operations, troop and cargo movement, and special operations, including high-profile missions by Army special operations.

The Army has been flying the aircraft since 1979.

The aircraft was famously a feature of the 2001 film Black Hawk Down, based on a book of the same name that detailed US actions during the 1993 Battle of Mogadishu.

The US Navy's SEAL Team 6 also used two specially modified Black Hawks, one of which crashed and had to be destroyed, during their 2011 mission to kill 9/11 mastermind Osama Bin Laden.

What are its specifications?

According to Lockheed, the medium-sized aircraft can hold up to 12 fully-kitted troops — and more without gear — and can be reconfigured to fly passengers or injured troops.

Black Hawks usually have a three-person crew, including a pilot, co-pilot, and crew chief. They have an external hook capable of lifting up to 8,000 pounds, and their top speed is around 170 mph.

The Black Hawk helicopter does not have any dedicated weapons systems, but it is equipped with mounts for machine guns and miniguns. It can also be outfitted with rockets and missiles, among other weaponry.

Who makes the Black Hawk?

According to Lockheed, which now owns original developer Sikorsky, the company has built over 5,000 Black Hawks for three dozen nations since the program's inception.

The aircraft is named after the chief of the Native American Sauk tribe and has accumulated over 15 million flight hours.

Various versions of the aircraft have been released over the past four decades. Lockheed is working on even more advanced versions with more powerful engines that the company says could one day allow it to hover or fly autonomously. The Army has been looking into partnerships that could lead to that degree of autonomy.

What's the Black Hawk's safety record?

Given its extensive use by the US military and numerous overseas operators, there have been a number of Black Hawk crashes over the years, including many incidents that have been fatal due to either human error or mechanical issues.

Last year, an Israeli Black Hawk crashed during operations in Gaza. And in 2023, three separate Black Hawk crashes resulted in the death of 16 American service members. Those accidents included one midair collision, one ground crash, and another into the sea.

In mid-2023, Military.com, citing Army data, reported 60 training-related deaths over the past decade.

What happened just outside DC?

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said the American Airlines flight and its crew were undergoing annual proficiency training. The helicopter was part of the 12th Aviation Battalion out of Fort Belvoir, Va.

The 12th Aviation Battalion has a unique mission, ferrying VIP military leaders and government officials throughout the National Capital Region.

"It was a fairly experienced crew," Hegseth said in his statement, adding that the crew had night vision goggles, though it's unclear if the night vision goggles were being used at the time of the crash.

US military pilots routinely train with night vision devices, part of larger military mandates that troops of all ranks perform certain proficiency training as part of their annual requirements. Military pilots are expected to be able to land in areas where a well-lit runway or bright aircraft lights could pose tactical risks, like attracting fire, and must train to perform in ultra-dark conditions.

Night-vision goggles sometimes limit depth perception and peripheral vision, and they can be difficult for new users to acclimate to.

For residents in DC and northern Virginia, it's not uncommon to see Black Hawk helicopters flying up and down I-395 or around the Beltway area.

For one impressive shot of the Pentagon, DoD media officials coordinated a trip with the 12th Aviation Battalion in 2023. Planning for the aerial photography included a detailed flight plan coordinated with the Federal Aviation Administration and in-air communications with air-traffic controllers at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport to deconflict airspace. These are routine 12th Aviation Battalion flight procedures.

The 12th Aviation Battalion helicopter collided with an American Airlines flight inbound to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport Wednesday evening. All crew members and passengers are presumed dead. The current death toll is at least 67.

The cause of the collision is under investigation.

• An American Airlines flight collided with a Black Hawk helicopter in Washington, DC.
• The nation's capital is home to some of the most congested and highly governed airspace.
• Reagan National Airport has the US's busiest runway, with over 800 flights a day, the MWAA says.

An American Airlines flight and a military helicopter collided late Wednesday in one of the most congested and tightly controlled airspaces in the country.

Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, just outside Washington, DC, is home to the country's busiest runway, with over 800 takeoffs and landings a day, the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority says. It's the closest of three area airports to the city, about 3 miles south of the White House.

Military helicopters also frequently fly low over the nearby Potomac River, transiting between military bases close by and the Pentagon, about 1 mile north of the airport.

Flying into and out of the airport, with short runways and such heavily restricted airspace nearby, is "like threading a needle," one pilot previously told Business Insider.

"It's a beehive of activity," Dennis Tajer, an American Airlines captain and spokesperson for its pilot union, told The Washington Post. "It's extremely compact, and it's a high volume of traffic."

Search efforts for the 64 people on board American Eagle Flight 5342 continued through the night. At a press conference Thursday morning, Washington, DC's fire chief said that no survivors were expected.

The Bombardier CRJ700 was operated by PSA Airlines, a regional subsidiary of American Airlines. It collided with a military UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter carrying three people.

Along with New York's LaGuardia Airport, Reagan is one of two in the country subject to a perimeter rule. At Reagan, this limits routes to a distance of 1,250 miles — though Congress has increasingly approved more slots to operate beyond this, which has made the airport busier.

Unions and regulators have raised concerns about the country's air traffic system after several near-misses in recent years.

"We've had so many close calls with runway incursions and commercial flights almost colliding, and when something repeats over and over again, we call that a trend," Anthony Brickhouse, a US aviation safety expert, told BI.

"We've been trending in this direction for two or three years now, and unfortunately, tonight, it happened," he added.

The National Transportation Safety Board, Federal Aviation Administration, and the Pentagon have announced investigations.

The crash brings an end to a remarkable period of aviation safety in the US.

It is the first major fatal crash on US soil since 2013. Three people died in July that year when Asiana Airlines Flight 214 crashed short of the runway at San Francisco International Airport.

Wednesday's collision was the first involving a US airline on US soil since February 2009, when a Colgan Air Bombardier Q400 crashed into a house near Buffalo, New York.

Fifty people died after the aircraft entered a stall and the pilots failed to respond appropriately.

The Federal Aviation Administration consequently revised its pilot-fatigue rules and required that all airline pilots hold an airline pilot transport license — the highest level of certificate.

Since 2013, two flights on US soil had led to fatalities before Wednesday. One Southwest Airlines passenger died from her injuries in 2018 after she was partially ejected through a broken window.

And in 2019, a man died when PenAir Flight 3296 overshot the runway while landing in Alaska.

• A passenger jet collided with a Black Hawk helicopter near Reagan Washington National Airport.
• Four crew members and 60 passengers were aboard the jet, and three were aboard the helicopter.
• President Donald Trump said there were no survivors.

Sixty-seven people are presumed dead after an American Airlines flight crashed into a military helicopter Wednesday night during the jet's final approach to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.

President Donald Trump confirmed there had been no survivors, calling the crash "a dark and excruciating night" for the country.

American Eagle Flight 5342, operated by PSA Airlines and flying from Wichita, Kansas, was on approach to land at the airport when it struck a UH-60 Black Hawk, officials said. Several federal agencies, including the National Transportation Safety Board, are investigating the crash.

A NTSB spokesperson told Business Insider in an email on Thursday evening that the "cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder," known as black boxes, were recovered from the Bombardier CRJ700 passenger jet.

"The recorders are at the NTSB labs for evaluation," the spokesperson said.

Meanwhile, crews are still searching the waters as part of the investigation and recovery efforts, while boats remain on the scene for security and search operations, according to the DC Fire and EMS Department.

"Our divers have searched all areas that are accessible," a statement from the department read Thursday night. On Friday, the statement said, "divers will work with NTSB to conduct additional searches to locate aircraft components, to support the investigation, and begin operations to salvage the aircraft.

Three Army crewmembers were aboard the Black Hawk from Bravo Company, 12th Aviation Battalion at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, whose identities will be withheld until their next of kin have been notified, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said in a Thursday morning video.

"It was a fairly experienced crew, and that was doing a required annual night evaluation," he said in the video. "They did have night vision goggles."

He said investigators deployed Wednesday night and that the 12th Aviation Battalion has an "operational pause on contingency missions" for 48 hours.

"We anticipate that the investigation will quickly be able to determine whether the aircraft was in the quarter at the right altitude at the time of the incident."

At the Thursday morning press conference, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said that both aircraft had been flying in a "standard pattern" that was not unusual, with no breakdown in communication between them.

"The helicopter was aware that there was a plane in the area," he said.

Duffy added that the fuselage of the American Airlines plane was inverted in the water.

"It's been located in three different sections," he said. "It's in about waist-deep water."

A livestream taken from the Kennedy Center by EarthCam showed an explosion as the helicopter collided with the passenger plane.

A spokesperson for US Figure Skating, the country's governing body for the sport, told BI that "several members" of the organization were aboard the flight.

"These athletes, coaches, and family members were returning home from the National Development Camp held in conjunction with the US Figure Skating Championships in Wichita, Kansas," the spokesperson said.

She added: "We are devastated by this unspeakable tragedy and hold the victims' families closely in our hearts."

Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin spokesperson, said Russian nationals were aboard the flight, according to the Russian state-owned news agency RIA Novosti.

At a press conference Thursday morning, Trump said he didn't know what caused the crash before laying out a series of diversity initiatives within the FAA that he suggested without evidence could have contributed to the crash.

In a video posted to the American Airlines website, CEO Robert Isom said the airline was "cooperating fully" with the NTSB's investigation of the crash.

"Anything we can do, we are doing, and right now, that means focusing on taking care of all passengers and crew involved, as well as their families," he said.

Isom said that the plane's pilot had six years of experience with PSA, and the first officer had almost two years.

Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport was closed to all aircraft after the crash and reopened around 11 a.m.

United Airlines and Southwest Airlines said they were allowing passengers booked on flights to the airport to change their travel plans without fees.

Anthony Brickhouse, an aviation expert, told BI that the crash was tragic but that he was not surprised it happened.

"We've had so many close calls with runway incursions and commercial flights almost colliding, and when something repeats over and over again, we call that a trend," he said.

"We've been trending in this direction for two or three years now, and unfortunately, tonight, it happened," he added.

Several near misses have taken place in recent years, in cities such as Austin and New York.

But this marks the first major commercial plane crash in the US since 2009, when Colgan Air Flight 3407 crashed over Buffalo, New York, killing 49 on board and one person on the ground.

Kathleen Bangs, an aviation safety analyst and former pilot, told BI that she used to fly into Reagan Washington National Airport as a regional airline pilot and that the "extremely busy" airport had challenging flying conditions, including two runways of 5,000 feet and 5,200 feet, and proximity to water.

"The conversation now will be what safety steps need to be modified to ensure there's never another similar collision in the nation's capital," she said.

This was the third major plane crash worldwide since December.

An Azerbaijan Airlines Embraer plane crashed last month, with some blaming Russian air defenses. Thirty-eight people died.

A few days later, a Boeing 737 operated by the South Korean carrier Jeju Air crashed in South Korea, killing 179 people. Two people survived.