From the Vid Source: 3 planes nearly collide at Reagan National Airport. Three planes may
have been on a collision course at Reagan National Airport on Tuesday,
according to a report by The Washington Post. The paper cites federal
sources who said air traffic controllers launched two outbound commuter
flights directly at a landing plane.

The air traffic controllers were making adjustments for landing and departing aircraft because of bad weather.

The Post said the planes were about 12 seconds from a crash when the air traffic controller realized the mistake.

"During
the switchover of operations, miscommunication between the Tracon and
the DCA tower led to a loss of the required separation between two
regional jets departing from Runway 1 and a regional jet inbound for
Runway 19," the Federal Aviation Administration said.

"Tracon,"
or terminal radar approach control, is a reference to a regional radar
facility, according to CNN. "DCA" is the International Air Transport
Association code for Reagan National Airport.

The paper's source says Tuesday's close call was a breakdown of communication.