DC plane crash likely ‘combination’ of factors, ‘lucky’ there haven’t been more air accidents: attorney

The fatal collision betwixt an American Airlines rider pitchy and a U.S. Army chopper astatine Reagan International Airport connected Wednesday nighttime was apt a culmination of factors, according to aviation lawyer Jim Brauchle, who says "we’ve been lucky" determination haven’t been more aerial accidents.

Brauchle is simply a erstwhile U.S. Air Force navigator who present represents families of victims progressive successful aviation disasters, including the 2019 Boeing 737 Max 8 clang that killed 157 persons successful Ethiopia soon aft takeoff and a 2014 Army Black Hawk chopper clang that killed a worker and earnestly injured 2 others connected committee during a grooming formation astatine Hunter Army Airfield successful Georgia.

"I hatred to accidental this, but a batch of radical successful the aviation manufacture person predicted that determination was going to beryllium an accident," Brauchle told Fox News Digital. "No 1 wants to, you know, accidental that retired large due to the fact that evidently that's a horrific thing. But there's been a batch of adjacent misses implicit the past respective years. And we've been, you know, we've been fortunate that determination haven't been much of these."

The collision happened astir 9 p.m. EST erstwhile a PSA Airlines Bombardier CRJ700 determination pitchy collided successful midair with a Sikorsky H-60 chopper portion connected attack to Runway 33 astatine Reagan National Airport, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said. The determination pitchy had departed from Wichita, Kansas.

AMERICAN AIRLINES PLANE, ARMY HELICOPTER COLLIDE OUTSIDE REAGAN NATIONAL AIRPORT NEAR WASHINGTON DC

Search and rescue efforts are seen astir a wreckage tract successful the Potomac River from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, aboriginal Thursday greeting connected Jan. 30, 2025, successful Arlington, Va. (Mark Schiefelbein/AP Photo)

American Airlines said the pitchy was carrying 60 passengers and 4 unit members, portion the subject said 3 soldiers were onboard the Army helicopter. Officials said aboriginal Thursday greeting that nary 1 is expected to person survived aft a monolithic search-and-rescue cognition successful the frigid waters of the Potomac River successful Arlington, Virginia.

Brauchle said determination are respective ways craft debar midair collisions, particularly astatine the engaged Reagan National Airport, including transponders and postulation collision avoidance systems that astir commercialized craft are equipped with, connection with aerial postulation power and what helium called "seeing and avoid," successful which pilots support a lookout for different craft and obstacles.

Brauchle said that keeping a lookout for obstacles is harder than it looks.

"Having flown astatine night, having tried to look and spot traffic, I deliberation astir radical would say, ‘Oh, however hard is it to miss an airliner,’ right? You should beryllium capable to spot that. But it's a batch much hard than radical would expect," helium said.

Jan. 29 D.C. plane-helicopter collision map.

At nighttime successful an municipality situation similar Washington, D.C., oregon bluish Virginia, pilots whitethorn not beryllium capable to spot different craft and alternatively whitethorn trust connected seeing anti-collision oregon landing lights, according to Brauchle. But antithetic ambient lights from gangly buildings and towers that are lit whitethorn marque it hard to separate which lights beryllium to different aircraft.

"What I've heard from the audio is that they called retired to [air postulation control]. The chopper said that helium had the craft successful sight," the lawyer said. "My conjecture is, and again, I'm conscionable speculating, is they saw thing that they thought was the airplane, whether it beryllium a operation light, possibly it was different craft that was taking off. Whatever they thought they saw evidently wasn't the aircraft."

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Brauchle said that typically, if 2 craft find themselves connected the aforesaid path, the much maneuverable craft is expected to effort to determination retired of the slower aircraft’s way.

"In this case, it's benignant of a truly unsocial situation," helium said. "Both of these craft look to beryllium wherever they were expected to be, oregon astatine slightest connected the route. Maybe not needfully the altitude."

Search and rescue efforts are seen astir a wreckage tract successful the Potomac River from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport aboriginal p.m. Thursday morning, Jan. 30, 2025, successful Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Citing the published routes for the 2 aircraft, Brauchle said that adjacent if some craft are precisely wherever they’re expected to be, determination is lone a mates of 100 feet of separation.

"If you person immoderate benignant of, you cognize altimeter mistake oregon a aviator conscionable somewhat disconnected altitude, you precise easy are putting airplanes successful the aforesaid airspace," the lawyer said.

Reagan National Airport facilitates commercial, backstage and subject postulation each successful a comparatively condensed airspace.

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"You’re combining each these antithetic aircraft, each antithetic types of aircraft, each successful a precise confined space," helium said, noting the swath of restricted airspace successful the D.C. country owed to nationalist information concerns. "And that's benignant of what's unique, I think, astir Reagan is that it is truthful congested successful specified a confined space."

The cause of the collision remains unknown in the hours aft the accident. Hundreds of archetypal responders conducted a monolithic search-and-rescue cognition for survivors, though the cognition turned into a betterment aboriginal Thursday morning.

Rescue workers respond to the country connected the Potomac River adjacent Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport connected Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, successful Arlington, Va.  (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

Brauchle said that, based connected his experiences litigating and investigating specified accidents with the Charleston, South Carolina-based Motley Rice instrumentality firm, the families of those who died are apt successful daze due to the fact that airplane accidents are "not expected to happen."

"What I've besides seen from the families is they're ever looking for answers," helium said. "They privation to cognize wherefore this happened. Why did they suffer their loved one?"

Brauchle said the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) volition apt merchandise a preliminary study successful 30 days, and thinks that families volition yet question litigation arsenic a effect of this accident.

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The NTSB is starring the probe into the midair collision, with investigators from the FAA assisting.