U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Returns After Coast Guard Plane Engine Failure

A U.S. Coast Guard aircraft transporting Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin performed an emergency landing at Ronald Reagan National Airport on Wednesday afternoon following an engine malfunction.

The incident marks the most recent close call in the heavily trafficked airspace above the capital.

Secretary Mullin later posted on social media, “The Coast Guard pilots handled the single‑engine landing with remarkable composure—‘no panic, just straight professionalism.’ After we landed, they told me it was their first such event, and we could not have been in better hands.”

The emergency landing took place at approximately 1:35 p.m., according to the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, which oversees Reagan National Airport.

The pilot of the Coast Guard GulfStream C‑37A transmitted, “We just lost our right engine and request an emergency immediate landing at DCA.” He reported 14 people aboard and about 2.5 hours of fuel remaining.

Air traffic controllers directed the aircraft to a runway at Reagan National, where it landed safely. The airports authority confirmed that no other flights were affected.

The incident adds to a series of recent high‑profile near‑misses over Washington, D.C., a busy commercial hub frequently used by top U.S. officials.

The Federal Aviation Administration deferred inquiries to the Coast Guard, which directed questions to Secretary Mullin’s public statement.

Safety oversight in the nation’s capital has intensified since a January 2025 collision between an Army Black Hawk and an American Airlines jet just outside Reagan National, which claimed all 67 lives aboard both aircraft.

In response, the FAA has limited helicopter operations in the area, expanded the air‑traffic controller workforce, and lawmakers have debated mandating advanced tracking technology for all aircraft.

Marine One, the presidential helicopter, experienced two communication outages with the Reagan National control tower last month, preventing controllers from hearing pilots’ takeoff warnings.

On August 4, a controller cleared an Envoy Air commercial jet to take off just seconds before Marine One lifted off from the Ellipse, bringing the two aircraft within less than a mile of each other. A subsequent NTSB report suggested that ongoing White House construction—specifically the building of a large ballroom—temporarily shifted Marine One’s takeoff point, degrading radio line‑of‑sight to the tower.

Following the incident, FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford said an antenna was repositioned to improve communications, among other new measures. However, a similar outage recurred last Thursday, requiring Marine One pilots to rely on other government helicopters as intermediaries before contact was reestablished.

Mullin’s emergency landing also underscores longstanding concerns about the age of the Coast Guard’s aircraft fleet.

Last year, Secretary Mullin’s predecessor, Kristi Noem, sparked controversy when the department spent $172 million on two private GulfStream jets to replace an aging model. The purchase drew attention to broader modernization needs, with a May 2025 letter from House Homeland Security Committee Democrats noting that many USCG aircraft entered service in the 1980s and 1990s and that “sorely needed modernization” was required for search‑and‑rescue and other critical missions.

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