Lawsuit filed after January's DCA passenger jet and helicopter midair collision

on September 24, 2025

The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday, names American Airlines and PSA Airlines, the regional carrier that operated the flight, as defendants, along with the federal government. It's the first of what are expected to be dozens of similar suits. American Airlines regional jet collided with a U.S. Army Blackhawk helicopter near Washington, D.C. in January.

A total of 67 people, including the crew of the helicopter and the regional jet, died in the collision near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, making it the deadliest air traffic disaster in the U.S. in decades. On Jan. 29., the jet had been cleared to land when the Army helicopter, which was on a nighttime training mission, struck the plane at an altitude of 278 feet. Both aircraft plunged into the Potomac River.

Federal investigators at the National Transportation Safety Board held a three-day hearing on the collision in August. So far, that investigation has revealed problems with the altimeters in the Army helicopter, which gave incorrect altitude readouts to the Black Hawk pilots. There were also serious concerns about numerous near misses at the airport that predated the crash.

"Casey was a devoted father and husband, and we built a beautiful life together," Rachel Crafton, crash victim Casey Crafton's widow said in prepared remarks. "Our lives were shattered in a moment, and the grief has been unimaginable."

Lawyers for the plaintiffs argue that American Airlines should be held liable, as well.

"The crash of American Eagle 5342 was predictable, it was preventable, and caused the needless loss of 67 lives on that fateful evening," said Robert Clifford, a lawyer representing the Crafton family, at a press conference in Washington.

Clifford argues that the airline did not adequately train its crew on how to safely navigate congestion around DCA, and that its efforts to maximize the number of flights in and out of the airport amount to "corporate negligence."

American Airlines immediately pushed back.

"American has a strong track record of putting the safety of our customers and team members above everything else," the company said in a statement. "We continue to support the ongoing NTSB investigation and will defend American and PSA Airlines against any legal action claiming the airline caused or contributed to this accident."

Case Information

The lawsuit filed over the January midair collision alleges wrongful death and survival claims against American Airlines, PSA Airlines, the FAA, and the Army, citing systemic negligence and failure to ensure safety in air traffic control. It claims the crash was predictable and preventable due to ignored warnings and unsafe operational conditions.

Case Name: Rachel Crafton and Casey Crafton's Estate vs. American Airlines

Court: UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

Documents

Case of Note 

State of Md. for Use of Meyer v. United States, 257 F. Supp. 768 (D.D.C 1966)

The District Court, Holtzoff, J., held that evidence established that government personnel at traffic control center at Washington National Airport, acting within scope of their government employment, were guilty of actionable negligence in failing to observe sufficiently on radar the presence of government jet airplane, which was being flown by visual flight rules, and to transmit timely warning of its presence to pilot of commercial airplane, which was flying under instrument flight rules, before jet airplane collided with commercial airplane, and that such negligence was a proximate cause of death to pilot and copilot and destruction of commercial airplane, so that government was liable for deaths and for destruction of commercial airplane.