Virginia Lawmakers Have Been Warning About DCA Traffic for Years

The cause of a collision between a passenger flight and an Army helicopter near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport remains unclear. But Virginia lawmakers have a long track record of raising concerns about the airspace.

Mark Warner

Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/AP

The collision between a passenger flight and a U.S. Army helicopter near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport on Wednesday night has put Virginia lawmakers at the center of the response efforts.

On Thursday morning, two members of the Virginia delegation foreshadowed a conversation they’ll be having after initial investigations into the crash conclude: the traffic flying over their state, D.C. and Maryland.

“We have raised this issue continuously. We’ve got very busy airspace,” Sen. Mark Warner said when asked at a press conference about past concerns regarding flight traffic on Thursday morning. “I think we will ask questions at the appropriate time, but we’re in this period right now where families are still being notified. We’re trying to figure out what happened. There’ll be time for those discussions.”