FAA Confirms Government Failure At Pentagon In Wake Of Deadly DC Plane Crash

A key hotline between Reagan National Airport (DCA) and the Pentagon has been down since March 2022, a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) official confirmed Wednesday.

In testimony before the Senate Commerce Committee, FAA official Franklin McIntosh said the Pentagon-maintained hotline had been down since March 2022, and the FAA wasn’t aware of the outage. The testimony came just days after a Virginia-based Army unit resumed flights following a Jan. 29 helicopter collision with a commercial jet that killed 67 people.

Aviation officials only learned of the issue this month after air traffic controllers at DCA had to wave off two flights due to an Army helicopter approaching the Pentagon.

The incident this month raised new concerns about coordination between the military and the FAA in the congested airspace around the nation’s capital. An FAA official testified before the Senate that the agency was considering suspending its flight agreement with the military. (RELATED: FAA Investigating DCA Control Tower Fight)

.@SenTedCruz on Newark Airport: “What broke down and how did the system become this deteriorated in the first place?”

Watch answer from FAA Deputy COO Air Traffic Organization Franklin McIntosh: “I don’t believe there was a heightened significant danger to the flying public…” pic.twitter.com/lotA30CBn4

— CSPAN (@cspan) May 14, 2025

During his testimony, McIntosh emphasized the need to restore the communication line between the Pentagon and air traffic control. “We’re insisting on that line to be fixed before we resume any operations out of the Pentagon,” he said.

The U.S. Army temporarily suspended helicopter flights near DCA on May 2 after two commercial planes aborted landings due to an Army Black Hawk en route to the Pentagon. The close call involved a Delta A319 and a Republic Airways E170; both did go-arounds. (RELATED: Reagan National Has Close Call Four Months After Major Air Tragedy)

While go-arounds are common, the FAA classified the incident as a “loss of separation,” a serious breach of federal air safety rules.

DAMNING NEW INFO on Thursday near misses involving two DCA flights and an Army Black Hawk. FAA says helo “did not proceed directly to the Pentagon” and instead “took a scenic route around.”

Closest distance to Republic 5825 was “0.4 miles and 200 feet.”

This involved *the very… pic.twitter.com/ZFT2RCDybE

— Pete Muntean (@petemuntean) May 2, 2025

The close call triggered investigations by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and FAA, and the Army temporarily suspended helicopter flights in the area pending review.

The Black Hawk was transmitting ADS-B data — unlike the one involved in a January incident — and briefly disappeared from radar due to a glitch, delaying controller response. The tower was fully staffed, and both the FAA and NTSB are investigating whether flight protocols were violated. (RELATED: ‘Accident Waiting To Happen’: Feds Ignored DC Death Trap For Years Despite Dozens Of Near Misses With Planes, Choppers)

The NTSB has previously faulted the FAA for not addressing mounting risks sooner, pointing to 85 near misses at DCA over the three years leading up to January’s crash.

Biden and Buttigieg spent more time changing the name of the cockpit to flight deck than fixing our air traffic control infrastructure.

No more. @POTUS and I will fix it. pic.twitter.com/C0YrXxuxx3

— Secretary Sean Duffy (@SecDuffy) May 12, 2025

In response, the FAA temporarily banned mixed helicopter and fixed-wing traffic over the Potomac near the airport. New guidance now permits limited emergency helicopter access but requires civilian aircraft to hold when helicopters are in the area.

Pilots have warned for years about near misses at DCA, often filing reports through the Aviation Safety Reporting System with little result. Many described helicopters flying just feet below them during landings — especially on Runway 33, where the crashed American Airlines jet had been cleared to land.

One major issue is that military and commercial pilots use different radio systems, making communication difficult. Several reports reviewed by the Caller cited this as a factor in near misses, while others noted trouble understanding helicopter pilots—even on shared frequencies. Most reports mentioned TCAS alerts, and many pointed to DCA’s heavy traffic and the pressure to move planes quickly as contributing risks.

The pattern adds to a broader theme: a government that has persistently ignored major warning signs, even as risks escalated in one of the nation’s busiest airspaces.

Last Thursday, Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy unveiled a plan to modernize air traffic control. The initiative aims to address safety challenges, reduce delays, and create a “state-of-the-art” system for today’s complex airspace.