‘Every Sign Was There’
This week, at the National Transportation Safety Board’s (NTSB) investigative hearings, we learned that this collision was not some freak, unforeseeable accident. It was the end result of years of ignored warnings, outdated safety systems, and fatal gaps in oversight.
NTSB Chairwoman Jennifer Homendy told families that investigators are working to uncover “what occurred, how it occurred, and to prevent it from ever happening again.” But then, her voice faltered.
“Every sign was there that there was a safety risk in that airspace,” she said.
It was a moment that confirmed what many of us already knew: the systems that were supposed to protect our loved ones failed them — at every level.
Not an Accident. A Preventable Catastrophe.
The testimony laid bare disturbing truths:
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The FAA failed to safeguard one of the nation’s busiest airspaces.
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The Army launched a night training mission into a congested flight corridor without adequate preparation.
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Air traffic control failed to maintain separation between aircraft.
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Safety technology that could have prevented the crash was not in use.
As cousins Amy Hunter and Rachel Feres — who lost Peter, Donna, Everly, and Alydia — put it:
“This was not a mystery. It was a preventable tragedy. Our family should still be here. So should every passenger on Flight 5342 and the soldiers in the Black Hawk.”
Lives Behind the Numbers
Peter was a devoted father and successful realtor. Donna, a beloved Comcast executive, was the center of her family’s world. Together, they built a backyard ice rink so Everly and Alydia could train year-round.
The sisters were rising stars in the figure skating world — Everly in singles, Alydia in doubles. The week before the crash had been a high point: they had just completed a milestone camp in Kansas City, skating alongside some of the best young athletes in the country.
They were coming home to share their joy. Instead, we buried them.
‘Regulation Written in Blood’
Our attorney, Erin Applebaum, told us what the hearings confirmed:
“This crash was the inevitable result of unheeded warnings, outdated equipment, and systemic complacency bordering on negligence. The safety margin at DCA had been stripped to almost nothing.”
We’ve learned a chilling truth in these months of grief: in aviation, regulation is written in blood. Someone has to die before rules are changed. That is an appalling way to keep the public safe.
A Warning for Every Parent
This isn’t just our loss — it’s a warning to every parent who puts their child on a flight and trusts the system to bring them home.
Our skies are not as safe as you believe. In the weeks and months after the crash, we learned of more than 15,000 recent close calls between aircraft in U.S. airspace. Eighty-five of them were extremely close. Some even involved military and commercial planes in the same airspace near DC — the same conditions that killed our family.
“We’ve even seen other near misses since the crash,” Feres said. “It boggles the mind.”
Where We Go From Here
We don’t want bitterness to consume us. We want accountability — and change. That’s why we’ve testified, traveled to Washington, and met with lawmakers and investigators. We owe it to Peter, Donna, Everly, and Alydia to make the skies safer for everyone.
“I don’t want to be angry,” Feres said. “I want people to get on an airplane and feel safe. I want to know we honored their legacy by making things better.”
If you think this story ends with our family’s tragedy, it doesn’t. The same flaws, the same risks, still exist. Unless they are fixed, the next grieving parent could be you.