The U.S. government on Dec. 17 admitted negligence by federal employees in the Jan. 29 midair collision between a passenger jet and an Army helicopter near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport that killed 67 people.
The crash occurred as an American Airlines jet was on approach to the airport and collided with an Army Black Hawk helicopter, sending both aircraft into the Potomac River. Sixty-four passengers and crew aboard the plane, and three military members in the helicopter, were killed.
The government conceded in a 209-page court filing that its “collective failures” contributed to the midair collision. The filing was in response to a Sept. 24 lawsuit by Rachel Crafton, widow of passenger Casey Crafton….