FAA investigates near collision at Reagan Washington National Airport

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said it will launch an investigation after two passenger airliners nearly collided on a runway Wednesday at Reagan Washington National Airport in Washington.

American Airlines flight 2134 was cleared for takeoff about 10:20 a.m., at the same time a King Air flight was cleared to land on a crossing runway. The American flight was quickly called off, narrowly avoiding a collision between the planes.

“An air traffic controller cancelled the takeoff clearance for American Airlines Flight 2134 because another aircraft was cleared to land on an intersecting runway at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport,” an FAA spokesperson told The Hill on Thursday.

A replay of flight tracking at the time shows the American Airlines flight beginning its takeoff while the King Air flight landed, before the American flight stops in the middle of its takeoff sequence.

The near miss follows a similar occurrence at the same airport last month. 

Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) was “relieved” over the news that nobody was hurt in the incident, but he said it speaks to wider concerns about the flight capacity at National Airport.

“I’m relieved no one was hurt. But this incident underscores again that DCA is at capacity,” Kaine said in a post on the social platform X. “This shows why Senate action to jam even more flights into DCA was so dangerous. The FAA must resist any new flights that compromise safety.”

The House passed the FAA reauthorization bill last month which included adding five long-distance flight slots to National Airport, despite strong opposition from Virginia and Maryland lawmakers, including Kaine.

Kaine argued on the Senate floor last month that the previous near-miss at the airport was already a sign that National Airport is overcrowded. He and other critics of the legislation said adding more flight slots was a safety risk.