Aviation Can’t Keep Learning Safety Lessons the Hard Way

Ignored warnings, known risks, and a tragedy that never should have happened.

Tim Lilley

Thursday, January 29, 2026 at 08:00 AM ET

Verified

Edited By:

Ryan Ewing

NTSB investigators inspect wreckage of CRJ-700. [Credit: NTSB]

Key Takeaways:

The author, a veteran pilot whose son died in a 2025 aviation accident, attributes the tragedy to a culture that normalized unsafe acts and failed to address known risks and warnings.
He highlights the failure to fully implement a 2008 NTSB recommendation for ADS-B In technology, which he believes would have prevented the accident by improving situational awareness in congested airspace.
The article urges Congress to pass the bipartisan Rotorcraft Operations Transparency and Oversight Reform (ROTOR) Act to mandate proven safety technology and calls for a shift from reactive, accident-driven safety to proactive, data-driven regulation.

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Tim Lilley, the father of American Airlines Flight 5342 First Officer Sam Lilley, is a retired U.S. Army Black Hawk pilot and current commercial jet captain.

I have flown military helicopters and commercial jets for most of my adult life. I have come to understand risk. I understand complex systems. I also understand, in a way no parent ever should, what it means when those systems fail.