President Donald Trump on Thursday took executive action to address FAA hires and aviation safety after an Army Black Hawk helicopter collided with a passenger jet in D.C.

WASHINGTON — Following a devastating midair collision between a commercial airplane and military helicopter that killed 67 people near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport on Wednesday night, President Donald Trump has named Chris Rocheleau as the acting head of the Federal Aviation Administration.

The USA Fact Check Team digs into comments made about the FAA and diversity efforts in the wake of the DC plane crash.

The FAA has said that all controllers have to meet tough testing and training standards and go through a lengthy certification process.

United States President Donald Trump on Thursday oscillated between consoling the nation and attacking his political opponents following the collision of a commercial airplane with a helicopter, blaming the incident on diversity policies by the administrations of former presidents Barack Obama (2009-2017) and Joe Biden (2021-2025).

Convicted felon Donald Trump blamed Barack Obama, Joe Biden and even DEI for the plane crash near Washington, DC.

During a White House briefing with reporters Thursday, President Donald Trump said weak DEI hiring policies in the FAA during the presidencies of Barack Obama and Joe Biden likely led to Wednesday fatal crash over the Potomac.

It was Trump's first press conference after a plane carrying 60 passengers and four crew members collided with an Army helicopter.

President Donald Trump on Thursday slammed his predecessors and Democratic diversity measures and suggested that the Federal Aviation Administration’s diversity efforts had made air travel less safe.

In a live televised address, the President said the federal aviation administration was 'actively recruiting workers who suffer severe intellectual disabilities and psychiatric problems'

At a news conference, Trump read a list of conditions he called disqualifying, but his administration started such hiring in 2019.