Former American Airlines pilot shares insight on deadly collision at Reagan National Airport

Sean Coffey Image
Thursday, January 30, 2025
Various factors likely played role in crash over Reagan National
In all, 67 people died in a collision Wednesday night involving an American Eagle jet and an Army Black Hawk helicopter.

RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) -- ABC11 spoke on Thursday with a longtime American Airlines pilot and Triangle resident as the investigation into Wednesday night's deadly mid-air collision in Washington D.C. begins.

Tal Holloway flew for American for more than three decades, including frequent trips into and out of Washington's Reagan National Airport. Holloway said there's a lot that goes into flying around Reagan, as there's a high volume of both commercial and military air traffic and extremely restricted airspace close by because of the federal government complex.

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"It's a very busy airspace in extremely restricted airspace, sits on the Potomac River and it's just outside the Washington, D.C. Prohibited Flight Zone, which is, you're not allowed to fly over at all," he said. "So it pretty much puts all the traffic out of that area. So it's somewhat like a funnel."

WATCH: The challenges of flying in and out of DC

A longtime American Airlines pilot talks about the challenges of flying in and out of Washington's Reagan National Airport.

Holloway also explained why this flight's anti-collision technology -- known as TCAS, Traffic Collision Avoidance System -- didn't prevent Wednesday's collision.

Holloway said, though we'll ultimately need to wait for the FAA and NTSB investigation for specifics, that TCAS only works in relation to other aircraft that use it. While all commercial jets in the US have TCAS, not all military aircraft do. Aviation experts have also pointed out that it doesn't work under an altitude of 1,000 feet, and Holloway said there are other potential complications closer to the ground.

"The system has a computer software in it that will eliminate some nuisance traffic calls if you're taking off or landing. And those parameters can vary based upon the airport and the aircraft," he said.

WATCH: Holloway explains limitations of anti-collision technology

Tal Holloway explains the limitations of anti-collision technology -- known as TCAS, Traffic Collision Avoidance System.

ABC11 also asked Holloway about the rise in the last decade of close calls at US airports. While the FAA doesn't have data published online showing the number of close calls in the air, its data does show a rise in near collisions on runways -- from 1,271 such incidents in 2014 to a peak of 1,821 in 2023. That figure dropped to 1,545 in 2024.

Holloway said recent shifts in the landscape for air traffic controllers in the US can play a role in close calls.

"I'm not an ATC or an air traffic controller, but from what I understand, they have been hiring quite a bit. So there's a lot of new controllers out there, and I have been hearing that they do have short staffing in some of the facilities," he said.

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