A U.S. Coast Guard jet with Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Markwayne Mullin on board landed safely after one of its engines failed during the flight.
The C-37A Gulfstream jet lost its right engine some 90 minutes into the flight, forcing it to make an emergency landing at Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) outside of Washington. The plane, which took off at 12:09 p.m. ET from Lawson Army Airfield near Columbus, Ga., had less than three hours’ worth of fuel, the pilot said.
“We just lost our right engine, would like to declare an emergency and immediate landing at DCA,” the pilot said, according to an audio recording published on ATC.com.
All 14 people aboard the flight landed safely after an air traffic controller directed the plane to Runway 1 at DCA.
It comes after DHS previously raised concerns about its aging aircraft. In a statement issued in May 2025, it called a USCG plane “over 20 years old” and said it faced avionics and communications obsolescence issues.
Its FY 2025 plan sought some $50 million to replace the USCG executive jet, which is used to transport senior officials.
Mullin Reacts to Emergency Landing
The incident did not seem to phase Mullin, who said he and others were in “better hands.”
“The United States Coast Guard pilots made the single-engine landing feel routine,” Mullin wrote on X after the incident. “No panic, just straight professionalism. After we landed, the pilots told me that was a first for them! We could not have been in better hands.”
The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority said in a statement to NBC News that after the plane safely landed, it was thoroughly checked by Airports Authority Fire and Rescue personnel, then proceeded off the runway.
“There was no disruption to other flights,” they said, adding that the pilot cited “a possible mechanical issue” in his report.
Previous Deadly Incident Near Reagan Airport
In January 2025, a passenger plane and an Army helicopter collided over the Potomac River near Washington, killing 67 people.
The National Transportation Safety Board blamed the FAA, calling the disaster entirely preventable. They said that air traffic controllers relied too heavily on visual separation, forcing the aircraft into a lethal bottleneck.
Investigators also revealed the Army helicopter was operating above its assigned altitude because of a faulty altimeter gauge. The catastrophic failure triggered immediate demands for sweeping overhauls to military and civilian flight paths.
There has also been scrutiny regarding the number of Army helicopter crashes in recent months.
There have been five major crashes of Apache plans since October, according to CNN’s analysis of military accident data in August, representing the second-highest number of crashes since the military launched the new model of the AH-64 in 2011.
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