Hidden away inside the 3,000-page bill, which grants the Department of War $900 billion and greatly expedites weapons acquisition programs, is a provision to open up military flight access in Washington DC’s airspace with fewer tracking requirements. Specifically, the bill grants US Army helicopters nearly free rein in the airspace of Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA), where 67 people died in January of this year in a midair collision.

The Chair of the National Transportation Safety Board, an unprecedented move in American lawmaking history, publicly and assertively pushed back against the bill during congressional review. Jennifer Homendy, NTSB Chair, called the bill’s provisions a shameful step backward and safety measures that make the airspace around DCA even more unsafe than before the deadly crash.

Making America’s Skies Unsafe Again

The fatal collision between American Airlines Flight 5342 and the US Army UH-60 Sikorsky Blackhawk helicopter on January 29th, 2025, was found to be caused by the Blackhawk’s deviation from its assigned altitude during the investigation in the aftermath. The crew was performing an annually required night flight while wearing night vision goggles as they followed the Potomac River and passed through the airspace of DCA.

Communications found that the helicopter crew believed that they had visually identified the incoming American Eagle Bombardier CRJ700, but it is unclear if they had actually spotted the correct aircraft. The airspace around DCA is a well-known area of risk due to its extremely high congestion between both commercial air traffic and military-related flights.

Many close calls have been reported in and around DCA, and just a couple of months later, in May 2025, another helicopter caused two airliners to abort landings as it was too close to the final approach path for safety. The New York Times reported that NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy heatedly spoke to reporters on Wednesday, December 10, while visibly angry at the proposed changes:

“This is shameful. [It] essentially gives the military unfettered access. It is a step backward. In fact, I would say it’s a safety whitewash.”

Canceling Oversight & Accountability

The National Defense Authorization Act is pushing to allow for military aircraft to fly through DCA airspace with all modern tracking devices disabled. The bill offers that this action will be authorized by any secretary of a military branch with the concurrence of the Secretary of Transportation after a “commercial aviation risk compatibility assessment.” However, NTSB Chair Homendy told reporters that no one she could find knows what the assessment actually is.

Lawmakers of the Senate Commerce Committee have pushed back, urging that the NDAA section be rewritten before the defense budget is authorized. The Department of Defense, redubbed as the ‘Department of War’ by President Donald Trump’s Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, never consulted with the NTSB or the Federal Aviation Administration at any point prior to the proposal of this bill.

In the House of Representatives, the top Democrat on the Armed Services panel, Adam Smith, lamented the free rein the bill grants President Trump and Secretary Hegseth. He stated the fear that new provisions would allow the Pentagon to simply not be accountable to Congress or the law under their leadership, especially given the newly laid out terms of this bill, according to AP News.

Dangerous Air Over The Nation’s Capital

Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport has had thousands of close calls due to a combination of heavy air traffic in restricted airspace, air traffic control staffing issues, and military helicopter operations. The NTSB found over 15,000 ‘near miss’ events between 2021 and 2024, as CNN reported.

Military aircraft were previously exempt from certain requirements, such as broadcasting their position using ADS-B technology, which reduced situational awareness for other pilots and air traffic controllers. The airspace around DCA is among the country’s busiest and most tightly controlled. The NTSB analysis revealed at least one ‘close call’ each month between a commercial plane and a helicopter from 2011 to 2024.

The FAA permanently restricted nonessential helicopter flights around DCA after the fatal crash of AA5342 this January. The NTSB and victim families are warning that language in the NDAA could roll back the post-crash safety improvements, like requiring military aircraft to use ADS-B, and potentially inviting history to repeat itself.