In the past few weeks, multiple aviation safety breaches have occurred in the United States. These four events occurring around the nation have grabbed people’s attention and have been extensively covered in the media’s forefront of attention. Air traffic accidents are significantly more common in general aviation, with over 1000 incidents per year resulting in five accidents per 100,000 flight hours compared to 0.95 accidents per 100,000 flight hours in commercial aviation from Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) data. As someone with knowledge in the field of aviation, even though aviation events seem to be occurring more frequently, the aviation industry in the United States is very strong even with some lapses. Aviation is the safest mode of transportation in history with the least amount of fatalities and the most efficiency, however, more frequent large-scale issues will bring safety to people’s attention.
Using the correct terminology, an aviation incident refers to an event that impairs the safety of a flight but does not cause any severe damages or injuries, while an aviation accident means there was a severe accident or injury/death. The quick succession of investigations into these recent events is frightening for the aviation industry, given that the United States is always at the forefront of transportation safety. In these four events in DC, Northeast Philadelphia, Scottsdale, and Toronto, there were a combined 75 casualties. The last fatal commercial aviation crash was back in 2009, with 45 casualties. Last year there were 1100 nonfatal incidents and 200 fatal incidents across all types of aviation in the United States.
Titled the 2025 Potomac River mid-air collision by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigation, this major accident on January 29, 2025, was the first large-scale commercial aviation accident, with 67 fatalities, in 16 years. This event was heard about all over the world when a regional Bombardier CRJ-700 aircraft operated by American Eagle flight 5342 from Wichita, Kansas, collided on final approach with a US Army Blackhawk helicopter on a training exercise just 800 meters southeast of DCA Ronald Reagan International Airport. This incident resulted in the full fatalities of the 64 airline passengers and three servicemen on the helicopter. Since this event, the FAA has restricted military exercises in this area from Joint Base Andrews in DC. The investigations are ongoing, with multiple issues being raised surrounding the service ceiling of helicopters being 200 ft and the crash being at 325 ft, a single air traffic controller managing both aircraft, and the controllers warning the helicopter crew multiple times on the approaching aircraft with alterations in their flight path.
The second incident occurred with a Learjet 55 medical transport general aviation flight, which crashed on January 31, 2025, shortly after takeoff from Northeast Philadelphia Airport. This flight was bound for Tijuana, Mexico, with six passengers: a patient, a mother, a doctor, a paramedic, and two pilots. There were six casualties on this flight, along with another casualty on the ground due to the explosion caused in nearby homes and cars. Currently, the NTSB has an ongoing investigation of the incident, but as of right now, its cause is still mostly unknown.
The third incident happened on February 10, 2025, in Scottsdale, Arizona. This incident was on a smaller scale, with fewer individuals and involved two private aircraft. A Learjet 35A, which happened to be owned by famous singer Vince Neil, veered off the runway while landing at Scottsdale Airport and collided with a parked Gulfstream G200 parked on the ramp. The singer was not aboard the aircraft; however, the incident caused one fatality and three severe injuries. The NTSB preliminary investigation stated that a failure in the landing gear of Learjet’s aircraft was the probable cause of the accident, but the investigation is still continuing.
The most recent and final incident occurred on February 17, 2025. This Delta Airlines Flight 4819 was a Bombardier CRJ900 flying from Minneapolis to Toronto Pearson International, which flipped upside down upon touchdown in the frigid temperatures. The aircraft continued a steep descent approach into the runway and, coupled with possible wind shear, caused the right side of the main landing gear to fail under stress, allowing the plane to invert on the tarmac. As the aircraft skidded to a stop, all 80 individuals, with 76 passengers and four crew members, survived the incident, 18 of which sustained significant injuries. The NTSB has already started investigating further causes of the incident. Even though the accident itself occurred in Toronto, Canada, this is still under the jurisdiction of the US government agencies FAA and NTSB due to the airline and crew being American in addition to the route starting from the United States.
The aviation industry, across military, private, and commercial sectors, in the United States is the safest and most regulated around the entire world. While these events seem to be happening within a short period of time, the modern tools of the NTSB, FAA, and other government agencies allow problems like these to be solved quickly. The number one cause of aviation incidents is pilot error through either a misinterpretation of guidance or wrongdoing in decision making.
When looking solely at the numbers, there is a one in 11 million chance of being in a non-fatal aviation incident for Americans, and an even lower probability if they are not flying in a small training aircraft such as Cessnas or Pipers.
The DC crash seems to follow this trend of pilot error. In contrast, the Scottsdale incident is likely to be a mechanical failure for unknown reasons. The Toronto incident looks to be a mix of both pilot error and mechanical failure in the preliminary investigations.
In turn, the American aviation industry is grounded on values with safety being of uppermost importance. However, an increased number of recent incidents can be linked to understaffing of airports from pilots to air traffic controllers. The importance of thoroughly learning from each incident is second to none, allowing for the skies to continue to be as safe as possible.
Works Cited
Federal Aviation Administration. Home. U.S. Department of Transportation, n.d. Accessed 19
Feb. 2025. https://www.faa.gov/.
“GA Accidents and Flight Hours Up While Fatal Accidents Continue Downward Trend.” General Aviation News, 26 Nov. 2024. Accessed 19 Feb. 2025. https://generalaviationnews.com/2024/11/26/ga-accidents-and-flight-hours-up-while-fatal-accidents-continue-downward-trend/.
National Transportation Safety Board. DCA25MA108 Investigation Page. U.S. Government, 2025. Accessed 19 Feb. 2025. https://www.ntsb.gov/investigations/Pages/DCA25MA108.aspx.
“Small Plane Crash in Northeast Philadelphia Neighborhood: Homes Catch Fire.” CBS News Philadelphia, 19 Feb. 2025. Accessed 19 Feb. 2025. https://www.cbsnews.com/philadelphia/news/small-plane-crash-northeast-philadelphia-neighborhood-homes-catch-fire/.
“Scottsdale, Arizona Plane Crash.” CNN, 10 Feb. 2025. Accessed 19 Feb. 2025. https://www.cnn.com/2025/02/10/us/scottsdale-arizona-plane-crash/index.html.
“Toronto Delta Crash.” Associated Press, n.d. Accessed 19 Feb. 2025. https://apnews.com/article/toronto-delta-crash-9c37b48b9719cffdbeba920d46e116b9.
“The Odds Are 11 Million to 1 That You’ll Die in a Plane Crash.” Flight Safety Detectives, n.d. Accessed 19 Feb. 2025. https://flightsafetydetectives.com/theweek-com-the-odds-are-11-million-to-1-that-youll-die-in-a-plane-crash/.
Wikimedia Commons. American Airlines Boeing 777-300ER (2-1 Crop) [Photograph]. n.d. Accessed 19 Feb. 2025. https://commons.m.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:American_Airlines_Boeing_777-300ER_%282-1_crop%29.jpg.
