In less than a week, two planes in different parts of the country crashed, killing dozens in total and leaving many Americans shocked at the destructive turn of events.

On Jan. 29, a passenger jet collided with a military helicopter over the Potomac River in Washington, D.C., killing all 67 people on board both aircrafts. Just two days later, on Jan. 31, a small medical jet crashed just after takeoff in Philadelphia. All six passengers aboard and one civilian on the ground were killed, while 24 civilians in the area where it went down were injured.

Tualatin High School government, economics and global studies teacher Kevin McManamon has followed both stories.

“From what I’ve read in the media and from a close friend who is a commercial airline pilot, it sounds like early indications were that the military helicopter was flying outside of the zone of the common path in that area [in the first crash],” he said. “The passenger jet was in the normal expected airspace, and a sudden change at the last minute of runway approach caused the passenger jet to alter its descent slightly, and it sounds like the helicopter pilot did not take steps to avoid the collision.”

McManamon added that the crash in Philadelphia was the result of a separate problem.

“The Philadelphia crash appears to be from equipment malfunction because it happened so quickly after takeoff, whereas the first one, from what I’ve read and what my airline pilot friend said, was operator error. [The medical plane in Philadelphia] was airborne for thirty seconds, maybe a minute, before it crashed.”

McManamon feels the incidents point to needed changes in air travel and all U.S. transportation.

“Like anything, statistics can be taken as anecdotes and out of context sometimes, but at the same time, it’s not nothing,” he said. “It happened, and it’s an indication of, perhaps, how the government needs to take seriously the staffing levels and workload of all key transportation systems – understaffed air traffic control rooms, overworked train conductors, all the way down to school bus drivers. I think we need to take it seriously when people in these positions raise concerns.”