NTSB to hold three-day hearing on deadly mid-air collision between jet and military helicopter

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) will begin a three-day investigative hearing on Wednesday into the January 29 mid-air collision between American Airlines flight AA5342 (CRJ700 operated by PSA Airlines) and a U.S. Army UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter, which killed all 67 people on board both aircraft. The hearing will take place at NTSB headquarters in Washington and will include witness testimony and an in-depth review of potential causes.

Among those attending are aviation attorneys from Clifford Law Offices and family members of victims, including Dailey Crafton, whose brother Casey Crafton, 40, of Connecticut, was among the deceased. The law firm has filed $250 million in pre-case claims against the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the U.S. Army, citing alleged negligence.

According to Robert A. Clifford, senior partner at Clifford Law Offices, families have waited six months for answers. “These families are entitled to further answers… and hopefully some of them will come from this investigative hearing,” Clifford said.

The NTSB has already noted abnormal staffing levels in the air traffic control (ATC) tower and communication lapses leading up to the nighttime crash near Reagan National Airport. The Black Hawk involved was manufactured by Sikorsky Aircraft.

The firm filed Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA) Form 95 notices in February, a legal step required before suing the government. If the agencies do not respond by August 26, lawsuits may proceed in federal court, though jury trials are not permitted in such cases.

Clifford Law Offices has also sent evidence preservation letters to American Airlines, PSA Airlines, and Sikorsky, and launched its own investigation into potential systemic failures in airspace management near Washington, D.C.

The NTSB hearing will be livestreamed and is expected to bring new details to light about one of the deadliest aviation accidents in recent U.S. history.