WASHINGTON, D.C. (January 30, 2025) – On Wednesday night, an American Airlines flight was carrying 64 individuals when it collided midair with an Army Black Hawk helicopter, which had three U.S. service members onboard, over the Potomac River in Washington D.C. All are said to have been killed in the crash, according to FOX News.
Washington D.C. Fire Chief John Donnelly stated that emergency crews have transitioned from a rescue to a recovery operation. The temperature in the Potomac River was reported to be 37 degrees at the time of the crash, as search efforts continued, according to FOX News. Donnelly said Thursday at a news conference that rescue teams have recovered 27 bodies from the plane and one body from the helicopter, The Washington Post stated.
The collision occurred at around 9 p.m. while both aircraft were approaching Runway 33 at Reagan National Airport, as confirmed by the Federal Aviation Administration. The wreckage was scattered across an area of less than a mile, with the plane’s fuselage found in three sections in waist-deep water, officials said. An interactive map from FOX News shows the flight paths of the plane and helicopter moments before the collision.
The pilots of the American Airlines regional jet were instructed to change their landing approach from Runway 1 to Runway 33 just before the collision, based on audio recordings and information from a source briefed on the incident, The New York Times reports.
The American Airlines plane was a Bombardier CRJ700, arriving from Wichita, Kansas. The Black Hawk helicopter was a Sikorsky UH-60, on a training flight from Davison Army Airfield in Fort Belvoir, Virginia. It remains unclear whether the helicopter was departing from or returning to Fort Belvoir, according to The New York Times.
The instructor pilot aboard the Black Hawk helicopter had logged more than 1,000 flight hours, a level of experience considered highly skilled, FOX News reported.
National Transportation Safety Board Jennifer Homendy said the board will analyze what human factors played a role in the crash, stated NBC News. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) plans to release a preliminary report on the crash within 30 days, officials announced Thursday.
This incident marks the deadliest air disaster involving a commercial jet in the U.S. since 2009, according to The New York Times.
American Airlines has provided a toll-free number for those who believe their loved ones may have been aboard Flight 5342: 800-679-8215. International callers can visit news.aa.com for additional contact information, and family members in Canada, Puerto Rico, or the U.S. Virgin Islands can call 800-679-8215 directly, FOX News reported.
