The head of the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Bryan Bedford, has acknowledged that systemic failures within his agency directly led to a mid-air collision in January 2025 that killed 67 people. The admission follows an investigation by the US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), which concluded that the accident stemmed from the FAA’s decision to permit helicopters to operate close to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport without adequate safeguards to separate them from planes.
The collision, involving an American Airlines regional jet and an Army Black Hawk helicopter, was the deadliest US aviation disaster in over two decades. The NTSB also highlighted the FAA’s failure to review crucial data and implement recommendations to relocate helicopter traffic away from the busy airspace. Speaking on the sidelines of an aviation conference in Singapore, Mr Bedford said: “We don't disagree with anything that the NTSB has concluded from their investigations. Many of the recommendations have already been put into action. Those that haven't, we're going to evaluate.”
In response to the crash, the FAA has made a permanent change to ensure helicopters and planes no longer share the same airspace around the airport. The NTSB is expected to recommend additional measures. Families of the victims have expressed hope that meaningful change will follow.
Separately, Mr Bedford declined to comment on whether the FAA would decertify Canadian-made planes, following a threat by President Donald Trump to do so if Canada did not approve some US private jet maker Gulfstream’s models. Mr Bedford said the FAA simply wanted “a level playing field” regarding certification resources. Canadian officials said they were working to resolve the dispute. Shares of Bombardier fell 6 per cent after Trump’s threat, and airline officials warned that decertifying planes for economic reasons could put the global aviation system at risk.
Mr Bedford also said the FAA was evaluating a request by Boeing to increase production of its 737 MAX aircraft from 42 to 47 per month.
