Federal lawmakers will consider a proposal to reduce congestion around Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Arlington, one of the busiest aviation hubs in the nation.
No survivors found in crash between military helicopter and jet over Potomac River near DC
Virginia’s U.S. Sens. Tim Kaine and Mark Warner, both Democrats, announced the DCA Air Safety Act on Thursday, after the completion of the National Transportation Safety Board’s investigation of the deadly 2025 crash near the airport between an American Airlines Bombardier jet and an Army Black Hawk helicopter over the Potomac River.
The crash killed 67 people including the pilots, crew members and passengers, some of whom were from Virginia.
The senators’ proposal would cap hourly arrivals, reduce flight clustering, and the specific time windows for flights to take off or land.
Kaine said in a statement that Congress must do more to ensure that the “highest level” of safety regulations are in place to prevent future tragedies.
“While I support various proposals to help do that, it’s obvious that any set of reforms that doesn’t address overcrowding at this airport—which sits along restricted airspace and is already operating beyond capacity—is dangerously insufficient,” said Kaine, in a statement.
He added that his bill lays out a “commonsense plan” to curb hourly arrivals and reduce flight clustering and overall traffic.
The legislation would cap hourly arrivals by requiring the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to reduce DCA’s Airport Arrival Rate to no more than 28 aircraft per consecutive 60-minute period, thereby decreasing the likelihood of a collision.
Following the crash, the FAA said the rate at the time was 32 and dropped to 30 by the summer.
The legislation would also prevent too many planes from taking off or landing at the same time. Within 180 days, airports would have to set limits for each 30-minute period so flights are spread out more evenly throughout the hour.
The proposal would remove 30 flight slots over five years to reduce overcrowding at the airport. Then, starting in 2028, six slots would be removed each year, including at least 26 flights that are currently allowed to exceed the airport’s 1,250-mile distance limit, with all changes completed by the end of 2032.
A mandatory public process from the FAA — including publishing a proposed list of slots to be eliminated — a 60-day public comment period, and publishing a final list within 120 days after the public comment period closes are also key requirements stipulated by the bill.
The focus on flights comes from the NTSB’s investigation, which found that on the night of the collision, one air traffic controller was responsible for managing 29 separate aircraft during an 18-minute period.
Since 2000, the senators said the airport has added 64 daily flights.
Congress owes it to the victims of the crash to act and prevent another case from occurring again at one of the busiest airports in the country, Warner said.
There have been several near-misses close to the airport since last year’s crash, including one occurring a month afterward and a second involving a plane carrying President Donald Trump.
“For years, Senator Kaine and I have been warning that DCA is overcrowded and have fought to reduce the number of slot exemptions at the airport. The risks are now painfully clear, and Congress cannot wait for another tragedy to act,” Warner said.
