US government acknowledges fault in crash killing 67 in Washington

The U.S. government has acknowledged that an air traffic controller and Army helicopter pilot were factors in the collision in January between an airliner and a Black Hawk helicopter near Washington D.C., resulting in the deaths of 67 individuals. This tragic event marked the deadliest crash on U.S. soil in over 20 years. In response to the first lawsuit filed by a victim's family, the government admitted partial liability due to the air traffic controller not following the right procedures for maintaining visual separation, as well as the negligence of the Army helicopter pilots in not staying vigilant to avoid the jet. The lawsuit also blamed American Airlines and PSA Airlines, although these airlines have requested to be removed from the lawsuit. In addition, although the government denied negligence from air traffic controllers and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) officials, they admitted to breaching their duty of care which led to the accident. The NTSB cited various contributing factors to the crash, such as the helicopter flying above the mandated height limit and the FAA not properly addressing the risks around the airport despite previous near misses. The NTSB's report on the crash is expected early next year.