About 4 in 10 flights had been delayed or canceled final month at Ronald Reagan Washington Nationwide Airport (DCA) as disruptions continued within the wake of the deadliest U.S. industrial airline crash in additional than twenty years.
The Federal Aviation Administration continued to restrict the variety of planes arriving on the airport — the closest one to our nation’s capital — within the curiosity of security following the Jan. 29 collision between an American Airways regional jet and a U.S. Military Black Hawk helicopter that claimed 67 lives.
Nonetheless, the air visitors limitations have fueled journey difficulties on the busy airport, DCA’s governing physique revealed this week.
Flight disruptions mounted at DCA
Throughout the month of February, near 34% of flights encountered delays arriving at DCA, the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority mentioned in a brand new report. That is about 3 times greater than final February.
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Shut to eight% of flights headed to DCA had been canceled final month, the MWAA mentioned — up considerably from round 0.5% of flights axed throughout that very same interval final 12 months.
The FAA started limiting air visitors at DCA instantly after the late-January crash, initially halting all flights and diverting planes to close by Dulles Worldwide Airport (IAD) amid a large-scale investigation.
Then, as runways reopened within the ensuing days and weeks, the FAA maintained caps on the variety of hourly flights that might land at DCA. For many of February, the variety of flights that might land every hour was down by greater than 10% from the usually allowed fee.
Including to the disruptions: routine halts in air visitors because of helicopters within the space.
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Following the lethal collision, the FAA rapidly carried out restrictions on helicopter visitors and mentioned final week it will heed pressing security suggestions from the Nationwide Transportation Security Board by closing off chopper routes close to the airport and solely permitting important helicopter visitors.
Nonetheless, some helicopter flights — together with Marine One transportation of President Donald Trump — are nonetheless allowed and incessantly lead the company to halt all flights at DCA, the MWAA famous.
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Delays have been much less widespread in current weeks, the MWAA reported. On Feb. 28, the FAA inched up the variety of hourly arrivals allowed on the airport to almost 95% of odd ranges.
On the time of scripting this story on the afternoon of March 20, about 12% of DCA-bound flights on the day’s schedule had been delayed, based on FlightAware.
Vacationers significantly involved about encountering a flight delay may at all times take into account flying out of IAD or close by Baltimore/Washington Worldwide Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI).
Whereas each airports are farther from the middle of Washington, D.C., IAD is accessible by way of the area’s Metro transportation system. BWI vacationers can connect with the airport on Amtrak by way of Union Station in D.C.
Located alongside the Potomac River in Virginia, DCA is a well-liked regional airport. A number of of the most important U.S. airways have a large presence there — most notably American Airways, which operates its mid-Atlantic hub on the airport.
DCA passenger visitors down
This week, airport officers additionally revealed a marked drop in passenger visitors in current weeks.
The variety of passengers that boarded flights at DCA final month was down about 12% to 13% versus final 12 months, the MWAA mentioned in its report this week.
Airport officers mentioned this discount in journey was due largely to lowered authorities journey and financial considerations amid the Trump administration’s sweeping cuts to the federal and contractor workforces.
A few of these considerations transcend DCA.
U.S. airways started to voice considerations about potential softness in journey demand final week. Not less than one main European service this week instructed TPG that it is seeing some hesitancy amongst vacationers to trip within the U.S.
The whole variety of passengers who transited via Transportation Safety Administration checkpoints nationally in February 2025 was roughly even with that of February 2024, based on knowledge reviewed by TPG. This development differs from the 6% to 7% year-over-year surge we have turn into used to seeing because the coronavirus pandemic.
Backside line
It is price noting the current enhance in flight disruptions — and reduce in passenger visitors — at DCA comes as a number of airways launched new transcontinental routes from the airport within the final month. Congress licensed these routes final 12 months in a controversial transfer.
These new routes included nonstop American Airways service to San Antonio Worldwide Airport (SAT), Alaska Airways service to San Diego Worldwide Airport (SAN), Southwest Airways flights to Las Vegas’ Harry Reid Worldwide Airport (LAS) and Delta Air Traces service to Seattle-Tacoma Worldwide Airport (SEA).
United Airways was additionally set to launch a second day by day nonstop flight to San Francisco Worldwide Airport (SFO) as a part of congressionally licensed exceptions to DCA’s long-standing limits on long-distance flights.
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