Current airport flight safety practices create an "intolerable safety risk" that could be eliminated by changing allowed separation distances between helicopters and airplanes, federal officials say.

The National Transportation Safety Board will announce on Tuesday it is making an urgent safety recommendation to prevent helicopter operations when two runways are being used at Washington Reagan National Airport following a mid-air collision in January that killed 67 people,

The National Transportation Safety Board said the separation between helicopters and jets in the area was insufficient and increased “chances of a midair collision.”