Overview

• Rachel Crafton, widow of passenger Casey Crafton, filed a wrongful-death suit in U.S. District Court naming the U.S. government, FAA, U.S. Army, American Airlines and PSA Airlines, with attorneys saying more families will file and cases will likely be consolidated.
• The complaint cites systemic failures, alleging the Army Black Hawk flew above its 200-foot route limit with an altimeter under-reporting true altitude and that controllers failed to issue safety alerts in a high-risk airspace with a history of near misses.
• It also accuses the airlines of packing peak-hour schedules, allowing acceptance of a runway intersecting the helicopter route, insufficient pilot training on local helicopter traffic, and a delayed evasive response despite a cockpit traffic alert about 19 seconds before impact.
• American Airlines said Flight 5342 was on a routine approach when the Army helicopter, above its published altitude, struck it, and vowed to defend against claims; the FAA said it has tightened helicopter operations and separation practices near Reagan National, and the Army declined to discuss the suit.
• The NTSB continues its investigation after hearings highlighted thin separation, altimeter issues and unaddressed close calls, and families are pressing for reforms, including ADS-B requirements for military helicopters and broader oversight of FAA and Army practices.