Reagan Washington National Airport has seen passenger traffic drop significantly since Jan. 29's deadly mid-air collision between an American Airlines regional jet and an Army Blackhawk helicopter, which killed 67 people.
New safety concerns over more recent incidents — including aircraft getting too close to each other last weekend and a kite being flown too close to a plane — could be making already anxious travelers feel even more nervous.
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WATCH HEREIt’s no secret that Reagan National has been under a microscope lately, but these recent incidents might not only have an impact on travelers' confidence, but also the number of people using the airport.
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SIGN UP The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) says a Delta Air Lines flight leaving Reagan and four Air Force jets headed for a flyover at Arlington National Cemetery had to be issued corrective instructions for being too close Friday.
A day later, Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA) police briefly confiscated a kite being flown too close to a United Airlines plane. The kite may have hit the plane at Gravelly Point, police confirmed.
In addition, air traffic controllers at Reagan’s tower got into a physical fight last week, a source familiar with the incident told us. The FAA said one controller was placed on administrative leave. MWAA police told NBC News a 39-year-old man from Upper Marlboro, Maryland, was arrested after the incident and is charged with assault and battery.
For travelers such as Donna Klein, this all doesn’t inspire the greatest confidence.
"It seems like there’s a lot more in the news about problems with air travel," Klein said. "I’m always anxious when I get on a plane."
Others, though, told News4 they still feel safe in the sky.
”I’m gonna fly, as long as I can," traveler Marian Byneau said. "But those accidents and things happen. That’s a part of the risk that you take when you fly."
Passenger statistics from MWAA do show a decline at Reagan so far this year.
In the graphic below, which came from this MWAA document, the red line shows last year's passenger traffic; the blue line shows this year's. Reagan saw about 120,000 fewer travelers this February than in February 2024.
National Transportation Safety Board Chair Jennifer Homendy cautioned the FAA to analyze all the data from all incidents at Reagan and as much from across the country as possible.
”It’s been a conversation for years on the information that they are getting," Homendy said. "How are they trending the next big accident? Because — and I’m telling you this now — the next big accident is in the data right now.”
MWAA officials say there have been other reasons for the drop in travel at Reagan National, including snowstorms in January and February.
