The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is investigating an air traffic safety incident involving Marine One while President Trump was onboard.
The incident happened on Tuesday while President Trump was traveling to Joint Base Andrews for a trip to Southern California.
“The president’s Marine One helicopter took off from the White House Tuesday afternoon, but air-traffic controllers hadn’t halted commercial flights at nearby Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport as required under safety protocols, people familiar with the matter said,” The Wall Street Journal reported.
According to Reuters, a commercial flight departed Reagan Airport one minute after Marine One lifted off from the Ellipse.
Per Reuters:
Trump’s helicopter lifted off from the Ellipse near the White House around 2:33 p.m. (1833 GMT), on his way to Joint Base Andrews for a trip to Los Angeles, according to a pool report.
A source told Reuters that Envoy Air 3742 — a regional E170 jet bound for Pensacola, Florida — departed at 2:34 p.m. and was involved in the apparent loss of separation incident with Marine One. Envoy is a wholly owned subsidiary of American Airlines (AAL.O), which did not immediately comment.
FAA rules require aircraft to remain separated by at least 1.5 miles horizontally and 500 feet vertically around airports. The sources said it appeared Marine One and the plane did not maintain separation. One said it appears they were not converging during the incident.
Video of the safety incident shows Marine One over East Potomac Park near a commercial flight.
WATCH:
NEW: STATter911 video showing a jet departing Runway 1 at DCA as the helicopter with President Trump was over East Potomac Park heading toward Joint Base Andrews. As @WSJ reports, the normal procedure of stopping commercial flights at Reagan National did not occur this afternoon… https://t.co/l3qGgDvXfa pic.twitter.com/lj4K19818w
— Dave Statter (@STATter911) August 5, 2026
Here is a wider view of the safety incident:
UPDATE: Here’s a second STATter911 camera showing a much wider view. This one shows the jet, reported to be Envoy Air 3742, above and to the west of Marine One as it follows the Potomac River north on it’s departure from DCA Runway 1. https://t.co/zb3yhPyZNE pic.twitter.com/GmgYvBpYMh
— Dave Statter (@STATter911) August 5, 2026
Audio of the close call reveals Marine One’s crew repeatedly tried to contact the control tower before lift off.
Per 7 News DC: Air traffic control audio captures multiple attempts by Marine One’s crew to contact the control tower before departure, with repeated calls stating the presidential helicopter was “three minutes to lift.”
The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating an air safety incident involving President Donald Trump’s Marine One helicopter in D.C. on Tuesday, according to a Wall Street Journal report and air-traffic control audio reviewed by 7News.
Air traffic control audio captures… pic.twitter.com/ysItQ6dUeA
— 7News DC (@7NewsDC) August 5, 2026
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