A deadly crash in Washington, D.C. has brought renewed attention to the growing dysfunction in America’s airports, which many argue have been in a downward spiral since the disastrous COVID-era policies of 2020. From staffing shortages to mismanagement, the cracks in the system are becoming increasingly dangerous—something Virginia Lieutenant Governor Winsome Sears (R) is sounding the alarm about.

Speaking on Fox News’ *Fox & Friends First* on January 31, Sears didn’t hold back. She called out the ongoing failures in air traffic control staffing and management, warning that the nation’s airports are being run on a skeleton crew—and innocent Americans are paying the price.

Sears highlighted the chaotic airspace in Northern Virginia, where Washington, D.C.’s airports manage a constant flow of elected officials, business travelers, military aircraft, and general flights. In such a high-traffic area, even a small failure can have deadly consequences—something that was on full display during the recent crash between an Army VIP helicopter and an incoming American Airlines flight at Reagan National Airport.

“Well, certainly something has to be done,” Sears said. “And that’s why the NTSB is doing all that they can, as I’m told, to make sure that this doesn’t happen again. It is a very busy air corridor—we’ve got a lot of elected officials from all over the country coming in and out…we also have a military installation there.”

What went wrong? According to Sears, it all comes back to a problem that has been ignored for too long: chronic understaffing. “This kind of heavy traffic is not unheard of, but we understand that it’s been understaffed. We have someone, the air traffic controller, who is responsible for both the helicopters and the airplanes, and I’m told that it’s supposed to not be that way.”

The Biden administration has had years to address these growing concerns, yet instead of prioritizing airport safety and staffing, Democrats have been busy pushing Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) hiring quotas and climate-change agendas. Meanwhile, a basic function of government—ensuring safe and efficient air travel—has been neglected.

Sears pointed out that aviation officials have *repeatedly* warned Congress about these issues. “And this is something, as I’ve also watched, where the NTSB persons have testified before Congress that this is a problem, where we have perpetual understaffing of our airports. So, something has to be done.”

Adding to the outrage, new reports reveal that the night of the crash, an air traffic control supervisor *allowed one staffer to leave early*, leaving a single controller to juggle both helicopter and airplane traffic *before* the normal safety protocols allowed for such a decision.

This wasn’t a one-off mistake—it was a complete failure of leadership. The preliminary FAA report confirmed that the staffing situation was “not normal for the time of day and volume of traffic.” Translation: someone in charge made a reckless decision, and lives were lost because of it.

While the NTSB continues its investigation, the question remains: how many more preventable disasters will it take before the government fixes this mess? Under Biden, the federal government has thrown billions at foreign wars, green energy boondoggles, and DEI programs, yet *somehow* can’t keep airports staffed or functioning properly.

This crash was a tragic reminder that incompetence has real consequences. America needs real leadership—before more innocent lives are lost.