Man arrested after fight in air traffic control tower at DC airport

David Matthews, New York Daily News on Apr 1, 2025

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A man has been charged with assault and battery following a fight in the air traffic control tower at Reagan National Airport in Washington, D.C.

The scuffle occurred at the troubled travel hub on March 27, airport police confirmed Tuesday to CBS News. The incident was described as a fight between employees, but no additional information about the circumstances that led to the altercation was given.

Air traffic controller Damon Gaines, 39, has been placed on administrative leave pending an investigation by the Federal Aviation Administration.

The D.C. airport has been the sight of several crashes and near-misses in 2025, including a January midair collision between an American Airlines plane and an Army Black Hawk helicopter that killed 67 people.

On Friday, warning bells went off in the cockpit of a Delta Airlines plane when it came dangerously close to an Air Force jet. On Saturday, a kite struck a United plane on its approach to land.

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