The Federal Aviation Administration is now reportedly investigating an incident involving Marine One on Tuesday afternoon after the presidential helicopter and a commercial aircraft experienced what officials described as a momentary loss of standard separation during President Donald Trump’s departure from the White House.
According to the FAA, a preliminary safety review found that the two aircraft briefly failed to maintain the required separation before continuing to move away from one another.
“Based on our preliminary safety review, there was momentary loss of separation after which the aircraft continued to move away from one another,” an FAA spokesperson told The Hill in a statement.
The agency said air traffic control remained in communication with both flight crews throughout the incident.
“The air traffic controller was in contact with both the commercial pilot and Marine One pilot during the loss of separation. As the White House has said, the President was never in danger,” the spokesperson added.
The FAA said it is continuing to examine the circumstances surrounding the incident and will determine whether any corrective actions are necessary once the investigation is complete.
President Trump was departing the White House aboard Marine One under what the article described as normal operating conditions on Tuesday afternoon. However, according to a report first published by The Wall Street Journal, commercial flights at nearby Reagan Washington National Airport had not yet been halted before the presidential helicopter departed.
Under standard procedures, commercial air traffic is typically paused during Marine One departures to ensure safe operations in the crowded airspace around the nation’s capital.
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
Because commercial operations had not yet been suspended, another aircraft departed at approximately the same time as Marine One, resulting in what the FAA classified as a loss of standard separation. The protocol is designed to ensure aircraft remain a safe distance apart while operating in the same airspace.
Despite the incident, officials stressed that there was never any danger to the president.
“Marine One flights are piloted by some of the best aviators in the world, and at no point was the President in harm’s way,” White House spokesperson Kush Desai told NewsNation in a statement.
Although the aircraft did not come close to colliding, federal investigators are reviewing exactly what occurred and whether existing procedures were properly followed.
Federal aviation regulations establish minimum separation standards intended to keep aircraft operating safely. According to the article, aircraft are generally required to maintain at least 1.5 miles of horizontal separation and 500 feet of vertical separation during flight.
Those standards are part of broader air traffic safety measures designed to reduce the risk of aircraft conflicts, particularly in heavily trafficked airspace such as the Washington, D.C., region.
The FAA has also implemented additional procedures specifically affecting operations at Reagan Washington National Airport.
According to the article, the agency requires commercial traffic to halt during certain presidential flight operations in an effort to further protect passengers and maintain safe separation between aircraft operating near the airport.
Those guidelines were adopted following a deadly midair collision involving an American Airlines passenger aircraft and an Army Black Hawk helicopter in January 2025.
While Tuesday’s incident did not result in a collision or injuries, the FAA is continuing its review to determine exactly how the temporary loss of separation occurred.
For now, officials have emphasized that both aircraft continued to move safely away from one another after the brief separation issue and that communication between air traffic controllers and both flight crews remained in place throughout the event.
The investigation remains ongoing, and the FAA has said it will implement any appropriate corrective actions if the agency determines changes are warranted based on its findings.
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