The U.S. government has acknowledged in court documents its failures that led to a midair collision between a passenger plane and a military helicopter in January that killed a total of 67 people.
The government acknowledged responsibility in a court filing Wednesday for the Jan. 29 crash between American Eagle Flight 5342 and an Army Black Hawk helicopter as it was landing at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.
“The United States has acknowledged that it owed and breached its duty of care to Plaintiffs, thereby directly causing the tragic accident,” government lawyers said in their filing.
The admission of liability was filed in response to a lawsuit filed by the deceased’s family. The suit was filed against American Airlines and PSA Airlines, which operated American Eagle Flight 5342, and the U.S. government.
American Airlines and the Federal Aviation Administration declined comment Wednesday. The military did not respond to requests for comment.
Robert A. Clifford, an attorney for lead plaintiff Rachel Crafton, said Wednesday that the government admitted it made a mistake. Crafton’s husband, Casey, died in the accident.
“The United States accepts responsibility for the Army’s needless loss of life in the crash of an Army helicopter and American Airlines Flight 5342 at Reagan National Airport, and for the FAA’s failure to follow air traffic control procedures,” Clifford said.
A lawsuit against the government and the airline calls the fatal midair crash an “entirely avoidable tragedy” and “an accident waiting to happen.”
The lawsuit alleges that the flight was traveling through one of the nation’s busiest air routes and that it was known or should have been known that there had been previous “near misses” in the vicinity of Reagan National.
The government said in a filing Wednesday that the pilot flying the Black Hawk “failed to take precautions to see and avoid other aircraft, and the pilot’s failure was the direct and proximate cause of the accident.” An American Airlines pilot similarly lapsed in caution to avoid the Black Hawk.
The government said air traffic controllers failed to follow FAA orders regarding visual separation of aircraft.
But he denied other allegations, including that air traffic control did not properly monitor the helicopter’s path, notify the helicopter that it was too high or instruct it to descend.
American Airlines and PSA Airlines filed motions to dismiss the claims.
American’s lawyers wrote that federal aviation law “gives the federal government exclusive control over the regulation of aviation safety” and that the company is not accused of violating any federal standards.
The parents of American Eagle co-pilot Sam Lilly defended their son against any claims that the plane’s pilot was at fault.
“We stand by the facts presented at the NTSB investigative hearing, which confirm that AA5342’s Captain Jonathan Campos and our son, First Officer Sam Lilly, complied with all required federal procedures and industry standard operating practices,” Tim and Sheri Lilly said in a statement Wednesday. “They did everything right on the night of January 29th.”
The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the midair crash. In March, NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy called on the FAA to severely restrict helicopter traffic near airports.
The FAA did so, permanently restricting “non-essential helicopter operations” around the airport, known as DCA, and “eliminating mixed helicopter and fixed-wing aircraft traffic.” The FAA announced these and other measures on March 15.
The Senate on Wednesday approved the Rotorcraft Operations Transparency and Oversight Reform Act (ROTOR), a bill to address issues and enhance safety in the wake of the crash.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said airport safety has been improved by eliminating the mixing of helicopters and fixed-wing air traffic, and said the ROTOR Act would strengthen communication protocols between aircraft.
“This important legislation builds on that progress, and I look forward to working with Congress to make our airspace the envy of the world,” Duffy told X on Wednesday.
The bill will next go to the House of Representatives.
