Some reports warned the flight space was "an accident waiting to happen." A crane lifts a piece of American Airlines flight 5342 from the Potomac River during recovery efforts in Arlington, Va., Feb. 03, 2025. Win McNamee/Getty Images Pilots and air traffic controllers notified authorities about airplanes and helicopters flying alarmingly close at Reagan National Airport (DCA) in at least 15 incident reports dating back to 1991, according to an ABC News review of the reports.