Army Halts Helicopter Flights Near DCA After New Near-Miss With Passenger Jets

The U.S. Army has suspended helicopter operations near Reagan National Airport (DCA) after a shocking repeat of a deadly mistake that cost 67 lives just three months ago. Last Thursday, two commercial airliners were forced to abort landings after a military helicopter veered off its flight path again raising alarm over reckless Army aviation near one of America’s busiest airports.

According to an FAA email cited by POLITICO, the incident involved a 12th Aviation Battalion helicopter, which is tasked with transporting military and political VIPs. The chopper reportedly “took a scenic route” around the Pentagon instead of flying directly to the heliport, triggering emergency action from air traffic controllers.

Let’s not forget this is the same airspace where an Army Black Hawk collided with an American Airlines flight in January, killing all 67 people on board.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy minced no words:

“I will be speaking to the Defense Department to ask why the hell our rules were disregarded.”

The Army is scrambling to downplay the situation, calling the “scenic route” label “inappropriate” and claiming the flight followed “published FAA routes.” But that did little to calm public and congressional outrage, especially given that this near-miss happened mere months after the worst peacetime military-civilian aviation disaster in modern U.S. history.

Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) slammed the Army’s repeated failure:

“Once again putting the traveling public at risk… It’s time for the FAA to act swiftly and assert control over the national airspace.”

Cruz also blasted the Army’s use of helicopters for what he dubbed “air taxis” for political elites, arguing that these VIP missions are needlessly endangering civilian lives.

Senators from both parties echoed the outrage:

• Sen. Jerry Moran (R-KS) demanded a full reevaluation of Army and FAA coordination, saying, “We already had a tragedy that should not have happened.”

• Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-WA) called the new near-miss “outrageous,” adding, “It is far past time for Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and the FAA to give our airspace the security and safety attention it deserves.”

This isn’t just miscommunication it’s systemic failure. Multiple near-misses in the same restricted airspace, involving the same military unit, in the same location that already witnessed mass civilian death, is not a coincidence it’s negligence.

The Army’s VIP flight culture, bloated and unaccountable, has turned civilian skies into a deadly maze, prioritizing convenience over safety. And while D.C. insiders get chauffeured through the clouds, American families on commercial jets are being put in danger.

The suspension of flights near DCA is the bare minimum. The Army and FAA need to answer under oath why a deadly system remains unchanged and what will be done to ensure these tragedies and near-tragedies don’t happen again.

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