Early in 2025, multiple plane crashes were reported. January and February saw 87 air-related incidents according to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).
These incidents have left people thinking about what went wrong on the planes and what airlines will do to address problems. Each of these plane crashes not only affected the people involved in the crash but also the people who had families or friends on the planes who unfortunately passed away in the crash. As investigators figure out what happened, they will look at all the factors like problems with the plane, bad weather, or even human error.
D.C.
On January, 29, a devastating crash took place at the Potomac River when an American Airlines jet collided with a U.S. Army helicopter. This crash caused 67, deaths which made it the deadliest air crash in the U.S. in 20 years.
The article What We Know About the Plane and Helicopter Crash in Washington states, “The explosive collision and crash left no survivors.”
The plane was also almost ready to land before it was hit by the helicopter. This crash occurred in clear weather and raised concerns about air traffic control as the airport was also very busy that night.
The FFA said, “A preliminary report by the Federal Aviation Administration found that a controller working that night was performing jobs typically assigned to two controllers.” Some people said that this shows there might have been a crash due to not having enough staff at the airport to manage the traffic making this a possibility for the crash.
Also, according to NBC, the deadly accident has also raised questions “about whether helicopters — in particular military training flights — should be allowed to share such a narrow and busy airspace with commercial airplanes.”
Included in the 67 victims were three Army soldiers and several young figure skaters who were Olympic hopefuls.
This was the first major fatal commercial plane crash in the U.S. since 2009, says NBC.
Toronto
On Monday, February 17, A serious crash happened at Toronto Pearson International Airport with Delta flight 4819 and the plane had taken off from Minneapolis St. Paul.
David Soucie, a safety expert, said, “Everything that could go wrong went wrong, yet 80 people survived the accident.”
The accident was attributed to weather conditions, specifically wind bursts of up to 61 mph.
This crash flipped the plane just before it was about to land, injuring 18 people. According to BBC, “The Delta flight skidded along the runway in flames before flipping over and coming to a dramatic halt upside down, losing its tail and an entire wing in the process.”
Despite the injuries, there were no deaths. BBC explains that the people on board were “left hanging upside down while still strapped to their seats” but then crawled out to “escape onto the snowy runway.”
A pilot, Dan Ronan, told BBC that the design of the plane and seats saved lives. The wings came off, which is an intentional design element that helps keep the body of the plane intact. And “the seats did exactly what they were supposed to do… the seatbelts worked just as they were supposed to, and the seats did not become detached from the floor,” Mr. Ronan said.
All five of the runways at the airport were temporarily closed which caused delays, and some flights were forced to land at other airports. The two runways where the crash had happened were closed for several days while investigators checked the scene, according to CNN. The delays caused a disturbance across the airport and impacted different flights from all over the world. As a result, the airports had to move several flights to nearby airports which disrupted travel plans for thousands of passengers.
Arizona
In Arizona, a midair collision took place near Marana Regional Airport between two small planes, a Cessna 172S and a Lancair 360 MK ll. Unfortunately, two people died while the two people in Cessna survived and had no injuries.
This crash occurred at an airport without a control tower, which meant that the pilots had to rely on each other to not cause any accidents.
The article Two Small Planes Collide Midair in Arizona, Killing 2 states, “Marana Airport is an ‘uncontrolled field,’ meaning it does not have an operating air traffic control tower, but instead relies on pilots to use the common traffic advisory frequency to announce their positions to other pilots.”
Without air traffic control it’s harder for pilots to communicate with each other which increases the risk of accidents. The investigators are still not sure of the exact cause but are focused on how the pilots acted and communicated.
The investigators said, “It’s still unclear how the planes ended up in the same location, but the investigation is focused on the pilots’ actions and communications.”
Comparisons to 2024
While news coverage has made it seem like the quantity of crashes in 2025 is more than typical , a comparison to 2024 shows that the number of crashes is consistent with previous years. In 2024, during the months and January and February, there were 123 crashes. In 2025, NTSB reported 87. Of these crashes, in 2024, 33 were fatal compared to 16 in 2025. Therefore, 2024 actually had more crashes and incidents than this year.
The difference, however, is the number of fatalities. The number of deaths in these crashes this year is double those of 2024, due in large part to the D.C. flight. This is because most crashes are smaller private planes with fewer than five people on board. The Delta flight with 67 deaths changed the numbers dramatically.
As Newsweek explains, “The increased number of reported crashes involving larger aircraft likely contributes to the perception that there are more accidents this year.”
INTERVIEWS
When interviewing Mr. Face I asked if he has family or friends who will fly on a plane soon and if the reports of crashes has made him nervous. Mr. Face shared, “My brother’s a pilot and he flies every day…I am always worried and keep up with him.”
Mrs. Waner said that all of the recent plane crashes have been surprising to her. “You know we went so long for not having any plane crashes,” she said, “so to have so many in such a short period of time is a little worrisome.” She noted that for an upcoming trip to Florida, she opted to cancel her flight and drive.” Mrs. Waner’s response shows that the plane crashes have caused fear and uncertainty about the safety of flying due to the crashes happening in such short periods of time.
Student Riley Turbett cited climate change as a possible reason for crashes. She thinks that weather and changing winds could affect the way the plane moves which makes it more dangerous. She notes it could also be because people aren’t cautious enough while repairing the planes.
In conclusion, plane crashes can occur anywhere and anytime. So far, just two months into the year, data suggests that the number of plane crashes has been typical. Apparently, Americans have not been scared away from flying. According to ABC News, this year’s spring break travel is actually up from previous years with 173 million Americans planning to fly in March and April.
