Data / Federal rules / 2026-01226
Flight Restrictions in the Vicinity of Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA)
The Federal Aviation Administration published this final rule in the Federal Register on January 23, 2026. It took effect on January 23, 2026. Comments closed on February 23, 2026.
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What the agency says
FAA is revising its regulations to implement certain flight restrictions in the airspace over the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) permanently. These revisions are necessary to mitigate the potential for midair collisions resulting from insufficient separation between fixed-wing aircraft operating to or from DCA and helicopters or powered-lift operating in the vertical- lift flight mode near DCA. The revisions will also fully implement a National Transportation Safety Board safety recommendation. The flight restrictions will prohibit helicopters and powered-lift operating in the vertical-lift flight mode from operating in a designated area near DCA unless these aircraft are conducting an essential operation.
Key facts
- Document number
- 2026-01226
- Type
- Final rule
- Action
- Interim final rule with request for comments
- Agency
- Transportation Department; Federal Aviation Administration
- Published
- January 23, 2026
- Takes effect
- January 23, 2026
- Comments due
- February 23, 2026
- Dates
- This interim final rule is effective January 23, 2026.
- Docket
- Docket No. FAA-2026-0199; Amdt. No. 93-105
- Regulation ID (RIN)
- 2120-AM14
- Code of Federal Regulations
- 14 CFR 93
- Topics
- Air traffic control; Airports; Airspace; Navigation (air)
- Pages
- 8
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Everything from the Federal Aviation Administration · Rules on air traffic control · Rules on airports · Rules on airspace · Published in January 2026
Read from the Federal Register API, last updated 2026-10-23. The document on federalregister.gov is the official record; dates and dockets can change through later corrections. Free to reuse with credit to SpecStream under CC BY 4.0.