FAA says Washington-Reagan flight pause due to ATC tower fire alarm

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said that a pause in flights at Washington Ronald Reagan National Airport (DCA) was due to a fire alarm in the air traffic control tower. 

According to the Associated Press, flights were stopped on August 18, 2025, between 10:45 and 12:00, and were followed by some minor disruptions to travel while operations returned back to normal.  

According to the news publication, the FAA confirmed there was no fire in the tower and staff were unsure what caused the alarm to activate. 

During the pause the FAA released a statement to NewsNation saying that it was “pausing flights heading to Reagan Washington National Airport due to a fire alarm in the air traffic control tower”. 

A later statement by the FAA said: “The FAA is slowing flights into Reagan Washington National airport due to volume after inbound flights were paused because a fire alarm was activated in the air traffic control tower. The tower is back to being fully operational.”   

Operations and efficiency at Washington Ronald Reagan National Airport are currently under the microscope after a PSA Airlines regional jet collided with a US Black Hawk in January 2025, killing 67 people.  

The Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy has made it his personal mission to improve safety at US airports and modernize the tech systems staff rely on to prevent accidents.  

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