Day of aviation horror as Americans petrified of flying after two alarming incidents

A deadly helicopter crash in the Hudson River and a runway collision at Reagan National Airport have intensified growing anxiety about air travel. Thursday’s incidents, which left six dead and several lawmakers shaken, are part of a troubling trend in 2025 that’s making many Americans reconsider flying.

In New York, six people, including a family of five with three children, tragically lost their lives when their helicopter crashed into the Hudson River.

Earlier in the day, a plane carrying at least six U.S. House of Representatives members was side-swept by another aircraft on the ground at Ronald Reagan National Airport near Washington, D.C., according to officials.

U.S. Reps. Gregory Meeks, D-N.Y., Nick LaLota, R-N.Y., Grace Meng, D-N.Y., and Josh Gottheimer, D-N.J., all confirmed on social media they were aboard the American Airlines plane that was clipped at about 12:45 p.m.

Two lawmakers confirmed that U.S. Representatives Adriano Espaillat and Ritchie Torres, both New York Democrats, were also on that craft.

Meeks said seven "members of Congress were on board along with dozens of other concerned passengers.”

The identity of the seventh congressional member Meeks noted remains unclear.

The FAA and the airline said both planes were connected to American Airlines.

They highlighted that Flight 5490 was a Bombardier CRJ 900 en route to Charleston, South Carolina, carrying 76 passengers and four crew members.

Officials said Flight 4522 was an Embraer E175 bound for John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City, carrying 67 passengers and four crew on board.

No injuries have been reported.

Not long after the incident at Reagan National Airport, a helicopter with six people aboard crashed into the Hudson River, prompting a massive emergency response from the NYPD, FDNY, and Coast Guard.

The chopper was carrying a pilot, two adults, and three children. Sources said the family members were tourists from Spain.

All six passengers were killed when the aircraft plunged into the Hudson River.

When questioned about whether the Hudson crash made him afraid to fly, an eyewitness named Sylvain told Mirror US that he felt: "Very scared, to be honest."

Venitha, who lives in a building overlooking the river, told us, "I heard this very loud noise. So, for me, it felt very wrong because it was so loud. And then I saw something yellow in the water. I saw a lot of ambulances from my window and knew something was very wrong.

"This is just heartbreaking because you're just on a vacation or something; this is so unfortunate. I'm just heartbroken, you know."

Following a series of plane crashes that captured headlines in recent months, Americans have become terrified of flying.

The world was captivated by the Christmas Day incident, where 38 died on an Azerbaijan Airlines flight. Four days later, a Jeju Air flight crash in South Korea killed almost everyone onboard.

A month later, a mid-air collision between an American Airlines jet and an Army helicopter shocked the US and the world, killing 67 and marking the deadliest crash in over two decades.

Understandably, passengers have expressed increased fear and anxiety about flying in recent months.

Meanwhile, others have expressed concern about the notion of “domestic terrorism, " highlighting the current level of unease in the US during the second Trump administration.