The U.S. government admitted the actions of an air traffic controller and an Army helicopter pilot played a role in the deadly mid-air collision between a commercial jet and Black Hawk helicopter near Washington, D.C., that killed 67 people. According to ABC News, the admission was made in a civil suit filing. However, the outlet said the government pushed back against other claims that were made. The U.S. government admitted some failures and accepted liability for its role in the deadly Jan. 29 mid-air crash over the Potomac River, according to a filing in a civil suit, but pushed back on a number of claims that were made. https://t.co/6ncDjr5JDk pic.twitter.com/cW6SyU8gdG — ABC News (@ABC) December 18, 2025 ABC News explained further: The filing came in response to a suit brought by the family of one of the 67 people killed in the crash between a U.S. military Black Hawk helicopter and an American Airlines flight operated by a regional carrier. The family’s lawsuit serves as the “master complaint” on behalf of all deceased passengers. The regional jet and Black Hawk helicopter both crashed into the icy Potomac River after colliding in midair, launching an overnight search and rescue mission, with no survivors found. Sixty-four people were on the plane and three Army soldiers were aboard the helicopter, which was on a training flight at the time, officials said. The government attorneys, in their 209-page filling on Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Washington, said that the pilots of both the Black Hawk and the regional jet “failed to maintain vigilance so as to see and avoid each other.” And it admitted that the Black Hawk pilots’ failure to maintain vigilance was “a proximate cause” of the accident. “The United States admits that it owed a duty of care to Plaintiffs, which it breached, thereby proximately causing the tragic accident on January 29, 2025,” the government said in the filing. The government also conceded that the air traffic controller at Reagan National Airport did not comply with regulations that state “[i]f aircraft are on converging courses, inform the other aircraft of the traffic and that visual separation is being applied.” The horrific crash was the deadliest aviation tragedy to occur in the United States in over two decades. According to the Associated Press, the lawsuit also blamed American Airlines, and its regional partner, PSA Airlines, for roles in the crash. Both airlines have filed motions to dismiss, the outlet noted. Story here https://t.co/PjocIrGp2m | The crash victims included a group of elite young figure skaters, their parents and coaches. It was the deadliest plane crash on American soil in more than two decades. pic.twitter.com/bw02gHUC9D — Eyewitness News (@ABC7NY) December 18, 2025 More from the Associated Press: And the government denied that any air traffic controllers or officials at the Federal Aviation Administration or Army were negligent. At least 28 bodies were pulled from the icy waters of the Potomac River after the helicopter collided with the American Airlines regional jet while it was landing at Ronald Reagan National Airport in northern Virginia, just across the river from Washington, D.C., officials said. The plane carried 60 passengers and four crew members, and three soldiers were aboard the helicopter. Robert Clifford, one of the attorneys for the family of victim Casey Crafton, said the government admitted “the Army’s responsibility for the needless loss of life” and the FAA’s failure to follow air traffic control procedures while “rightfully” acknowledging others –- American Airlines and PSA Airlines -– also contributed to the deaths. The families of the victims “remain deeply saddened and anchored in the grief caused by this tragic loss of life,” he said.