On a cold Wednesday night in late January 2025, a tragedy unfolded over the Potomac River that sounds like something out of a bad movie. But for the family of Kiah Duggins, it was a sudden, crushing reality.
Kiah wasn't just another name on a passenger manifest. She was a 30-year-old Harvard Law graduate, a civil rights attorney, and a woman who had spent her life fighting for people who usually get ignored by the system. She was on American Airlines Flight 5342, a regional jet operated by PSA Airlines, heading back to D.C. after visiting her mom in Wichita, Kansas.
Then the unthinkable happened.
Around 9:00 p.m. on January 29, 2025, that jet collided mid-air with a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter. It was a metal-on-metal scream in the dark sky just outside Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA). Both aircraft plummeted into the river. There were 64 people on that plane and three soldiers in the helicopter. Nobody survived.
Why the Kiah Duggins Plane Crash is Still Being Talked About
The investigation into the collision—the deadliest in the U.S. in over twenty years—focused heavily on the "close calls" that had been happening at Reagan National for years. Honestly, the NTSB had been warning about this. Reports later surfaced showing there had been over 15,000 "near-misses" at airports across the country in the years leading up to the crash.
Kiah's death became the face of this tragedy because of who she was.
She had just finished a trip home to help her mother, Gwen Duggins, who was recovering from a double mastectomy. Kiah almost didn't go because she was so busy with her legal work, but she told her mom, "I’m absolutely going to be there." She was that kind of person. A "sunshine personified" kind of woman, according to her boyfriend, NPR host Adrian Ma.
The Mid-Air Collision Details
The logistics of the crash are baffling.
- The Aircraft: A Bombardier CRJ-700 (American Eagle) and a Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk.
- The Impact: Occurred during the final approach phase for Flight 5342.
- The Recovery: D.C. Fire and EMS Chief John A. Donnelly confirmed within 24 hours that the mission had shifted from rescue to recovery.
The Potomac River is shallow in parts but notoriously murky. Divers spent days pulling wreckage from the water while families waited at the airport. Adrian Ma later described the scene at the terminal—watching emergency lights flash outside the windows and seeing a manifest where the names just kept going and going.
A Legacy Cut Short: From Wichita to Harvard
Kiah Duggins didn't just have a resume; she had a mission. She grew up in Wichita, Kansas, attended East High, and was a Clay Barton Scholar at Wichita State. Most people knew her as a powerhouse. She co-founded the Shocker Food Locker to help hungry students and even competed in the Miss Kansas pageant, making the top 10.
She eventually landed at Harvard Law School, where she became the president of the Harvard Legal Aid Bureau. During the pandemic, when most people were just trying to survive, she was fighting to stop unlawful evictions for families in Boston.
By the time of the accident, she was working for the Civil Rights Corps in D.C. She was litigating against "money bail" systems and police misconduct in places like Tennessee and Texas. She was also supposed to start a dream job as an associate professor at Howard University School of Law in the fall of 2025.
"She was the best of us," her classmates wrote. Even the Obamas reached out to the family, as Kiah had previously interned for Michelle Obama’s "Let Girls Learn" initiative.
The Investigation and Aviation Safety Gaps
When you look at the Kiah Duggins plane crash, you have to look at the systemic failures. This wasn't just a freak accident; it was a collision between a commercial flight and a military helicopter in one of the most restricted and crowded airspaces in the world.
The NTSB (National Transportation Safety Board) spent months analyzing the "see and avoid" protocols. Basically, in clear-ish weather, pilots are supposed to be the final eyes on the sky. But at night, near a major metro airport, things move fast. There are questions about why the TCAS (Traffic Collision Avoidance System) didn't prevent the impact.
What went wrong?
- Air Traffic Control Communication: Was there a handoff error between civilian and military controllers?
- Transponder Issues: Were both aircraft "visible" on each other's screens?
- Airport Density: Reagan National is notorious for its difficult flight paths and proximity to restricted "P-56" airspace (the White House and Capitol).
The crash also took the lives of several members of the U.S. Figure Skating community, including world champions Vadim Naumov and Evgenia Shishkova. The sheer volume of talent and potential lost in those few seconds over the river is still hard for many to process.
Moving Forward: Lessons for Travelers and Advocates
Kiah’s family hasn't let her memory fade into a statistic. They’ve focused on "Kiah’s Princess Project," an initiative she started to mentor young women. They also emphasize her favorite Bible verse, Luke 12:48: "To whom much is given, much is required."
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If you’re following this story, the best way to honor the victims is to stay informed about aviation safety advocacy.
Steps to Take Following This Incident:
- Support FAA Modernization: Many aviation experts argue that the technology used in towers and cockpits needs a massive overhaul to handle current traffic levels.
- Check NTSB Recommendations: You can actually read the safety recommendations issued after the 2025 collision on the official NTSB website to see what changes are being demanded of airlines.
- Carry on the Work: Kiah was passionate about civil rights and systemic justice. Supporting organizations like the Civil Rights Corps is a direct way to continue the work she was doing before the crash.
The Kiah Duggins plane crash was a tragedy of errors and timing. It took a woman who was on track to change the legal landscape of the country. While the lawsuits and technical investigations continue, the real story remains the light she left behind and the urgent need to ensure such a collision never happens again in American skies.
Stay updated on the final NTSB report releases, as these documents provide the most granular detail on pilot communication and mechanical findings. You can find these by searching the official NTSB accident database using the date January 29, 2025.