A military helicopter carrying President Trump came less than a mile from a passenger jet above Washington on Tuesday after garbled communications with Ronald Reagan National Airport’s tower delayed air traffic controllers from clearing nearby air traffic, according to two people familiar with federal officials’ initial assessment.
The incident occurred shortly after 2:30 p.m. as Mr. Trump was flying to Joint Base Andrews from the White House on the initial leg of a planned trip to Los Angeles.
Before taking off, the crew of Marine One — the call sign of the helicopter that carries the president — made three attempts to warn controllers in the National Airport tower that they were three minutes away from taking off, according to audio recordings posted on ATC.com.
The communications appeared not to have been heard by the controller, and the helicopter advanced. That put it in the flight path of an Envoy Air passenger jet, a haunting situation after a tragic collision between a military helicopter and a passenger jet in the Washington airspace last year.
At their closest proximity, Marine One came within 0.8 miles of lateral distance and 700 feet of vertical distance from the passenger jet, according to the two people with knowledge of the Federal Aviation Administration’s preliminary findings.
A loss of safe separation — the distance between two aircraft that is needed to reduce the likelihood of a collision — is defined by the F.A.A. in a case like this as breaching either 1.5 miles in lateral distance or 500 feet in vertical distance. But the parameters can vary depending on the airspace and the types of aircraft.
Kush Desai, a White House spokesman, said in a statement that Marine One flights are piloted by the finest aviators in the world, and the White House maintains the utmost confidence in them.
“Although the president was at no point in harm’s way during yesterday’s momentary loss of separation, the White House continues to work with relevant military, F.A.A. and other security personnel to ensure the president’s continued safety,” Mr. Desai said.
Since July, Mr. Trump has been flying in and out of the Ellipse, a public park south of the White House, because the area on the White House South Lawn from which Marine One typically operates has been closed for the construction of a new helipad. That change has upended the routine in airspace that was already one of the country’s most complex, requiring a constant and elaborate dance among military aircraft, civilian helicopters and passenger jets for three major airports.
Cassandra Nolan, a spokeswoman for the F.A.A., said in a statement that, “based on our preliminary safety review,” there had been a “momentary loss of separation.” She added that the president was “never in danger,” but that a “review” continues.
A spokesman for the Marine Corps, Capt. Jacob M. Sugg, called the flight “routine.” He did not respond to more detailed questions about the incident. The incident was reported earlier by The Wall Street Journal.
The airspace around National Airport has been a source of safety concern ever since an Army Black Hawk helicopter crashed into an American Airlines passenger flight on Jan. 29, 2025, killing all 67 people aboard both aircraft.
A report by the National Transportation Safety Board, the independent government agency that investigated the accident, found that degraded radio reception deprived the Black Hawk crew of critical information about the aircraft with which it ultimately collided. The board also found that the controller handling those flights was overtaxed by working two jobs at a busy time.
Since then, the F.A.A. has taken some steps to improve air safety above Washington, including by modifying and closing helicopter routes. But many of the other safety measures recommended by the N.T.S.B. have yet to be adopted.
On Tuesday, the radio reception problems were evident even before Marine One took off from the Ellipse for the trip to Andrews.
“Tower, just want to make sure you copy, Marine One, three minutes to lift,” a crew member in the helicopter radioed around 2:31 p.m., according to the audio recording on ATC.com.
He received no response as the controllers in the tower instructed other pilots.
“Tower, do you copy?” the Marine One crew member asked, repeating the three-minute warning.
A male controller indicated in a muffled reply that the “last calling” was “broken” and “unreadable.”
Marine One repeated its notification a third time. The pilots took off.
At about 2:34, the helicopter radioed the tower again: “National Tower, Marine One, proceeding as briefed.”
The controller sounded surprised. “Uh, Marine One, you said, uh, you’re proceeding as briefed?”
Marine One confirmed that it was.
“Marine One, tower,” replied the controller. He offered an altitude reading. Then he seemed to acknowledge the lack of a three-minute warning, adding: “OK, no three minutes. Roger. Proceed as briefed.”
Less than a minute later, the controller offered the presidential helicopter a warning.
“Marine One, you got, uh, traffic rotating off Runway 1,” said the controller, referring to National Airport’s main runway for takeoffs and landings.
The flight operated by Envoy Air, a subsidiary of American Airlines, had just taken off from National Airport on its way to Pensacola, Fla. It was evidently nearby.
Marine One replied “visual traffic,” likely an indication that it saw the other aircraft, according to a local helicopter pilot who requested anonymity because he is not authorized to speak publicly. A short while later, the helicopter crew announced a “momentary delay.”
The controller said, “Roger,” then confirmed the helicopter could proceed.
Erica L. Green contributed reporting.
