Okay, so like, what is even happening with the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) right now? Because this airplane-helicopter crash near Washington D.C.’s Reagan National Airport is beyond tragic, and now everyone is pointing fingers. Like, all 67 people on board both aircraft lost their lives, and investigators are scrambling to figure out what went wrong.

U.S. President Donald Trump was one of the first to weigh in on his social media platform Truth Social, blaming the helicopter for flying “too high, by a lot.” Then he totally slammed diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies in the FAA, saying they focused on identity instead of qualifications.

Uh, red herring alert!—that means when someone says or does something misleading to divert attention from the real issue.

And, like, a preliminary report on the plane and helicopter collision totally contradicts Trump’s favorite, frankly racist and misogynistic, DEI scapegoat. An internal report from the FAA found that, actually, the tower’s staffing at Ronald Reagan National Airport was “not normal for the time of day and volume of traffic,” according to The New York Times. There was only one air traffic controller when usually it should be two people.

What Trump didn’t say is that back on January 20, 2025, his administration put a federal hiring freeze in place, which totally included the FAA. And guess what? It made the air traffic controller shortage even worse. The National Air Traffic Controllers Association has been warning, literally forever, that major airports like Reagan National just don’t have enough staff to keep things safe.

And, oh my gosh, get this—FAA employees got emails after the crash offering them buyouts and basically encouraging them to resign. Like, can you imagine? Some employees straight-up called it “distressing” and “short-sighted” because the FAA already doesn’t have enough people to do the job. Now lawmakers are questioning whether these staffing cuts played a role in the crash.

So, like, now everyone is wondering if FAA policies—like hiring freezes and staffing shortages—might have been the actual reason as part of what led to this horrible tragedy.

But, like, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has barely started its investigation, and no official findings have been released yet. So let’s get real here—instead of pointing fingers, we should probably focus on fixing the air traffic controller shortage and making sure aviation safety stays, you know, a priority.

The NTSB will figure out what actually happened, but one thing is super clear: the FAA needs more funding and staff ASAP.

XOXO,
Valley Girl Opinion