Collision of an airplane and a helicopter over the Potomac: 64 people on board, no survivors
30 january 2025 в 21:37
Regional American Airlines plane and U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter collided on Wednesday evening over the Potomac River near Washington, D.C., and it is expected that there are no survivors. There were 64 people on board the plane.
American Airlines Flight 5342 departed from Wichita, Kansas, and was preparing to land at Reagan Airport.
American Airlines CEO Robert Isom stated that the plane involved in the tragic collision on Wednesday evening belonged to PSA Airlines, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the company.
Isom shared at a press conference: «On final approach to Reagan National, it collided with a military aircraft on what was otherwise a normal approach. At this time, we do not know why the military aircraft ended up on the path of the plane», - reports The Associated Press.
The military aircraft arrived from Davison Air Base in Fort Belvoir, Virginia, south of Washington.
Before the collision, the air traffic controller asked the helicopter pilot if he saw the plane, and gave further instructions to the pilot to «pass behind» the plane.
Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) is located in Arlington, Virginia, just a few kilometers from Washington, D.C. It has one of the busiest airspaces in the world, including the busiest runway in the U.S., Runway 1.
The airport reopened on Thursday morning, approximately 14 hours after the horrific crash.
The Potomac River flows through the eastern United States, passing through the states of West Virginia, Maryland, and Virginia. It empties into the Chesapeake Bay, passing through Washington, D.C., along the way. The river serves as a natural boundary between Washington, D.C., and Virginia.
At a press conference, the chief of the fire and emergency medical services of the District of Columbia, John Donnelly, shared: «We are now transitioning from a rescue operation to a search operation. We do not believe there are any survivors after this crash», - reports Politico.
«This is a very complex operation, the conditions there are extremely challenging for rescuers. It’s cold. They are dealing with relatively windy conditions», - Donnelly added.
At a morning press conference on Thursday, officials reported that 27 bodies from the plane and one from the helicopter had been recovered
American Airlines Flight 5342 departed from Wichita, Kansas, and was preparing to land at Reagan Airport.
American Airlines CEO Robert Isom stated that the plane involved in the tragic collision on Wednesday evening belonged to PSA Airlines, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the company.
Isom shared at a press conference: «On final approach to Reagan National, it collided with a military aircraft on what was otherwise a normal approach. At this time, we do not know why the military aircraft ended up on the path of the plane», - reports The Associated Press.
The military aircraft arrived from Davison Air Base in Fort Belvoir, Virginia, south of Washington.
Before the collision, the air traffic controller asked the helicopter pilot if he saw the plane, and gave further instructions to the pilot to «pass behind» the plane.
Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) is located in Arlington, Virginia, just a few kilometers from Washington, D.C. It has one of the busiest airspaces in the world, including the busiest runway in the U.S., Runway 1.
The airport reopened on Thursday morning, approximately 14 hours after the horrific crash.
The Potomac River flows through the eastern United States, passing through the states of West Virginia, Maryland, and Virginia. It empties into the Chesapeake Bay, passing through Washington, D.C., along the way. The river serves as a natural boundary between Washington, D.C., and Virginia.
At a press conference, the chief of the fire and emergency medical services of the District of Columbia, John Donnelly, shared: «We are now transitioning from a rescue operation to a search operation. We do not believe there are any survivors after this crash», - reports Politico.
«This is a very complex operation, the conditions there are extremely challenging for rescuers. It’s cold. They are dealing with relatively windy conditions», - Donnelly added.
At a morning press conference on Thursday, officials reported that 27 bodies from the plane and one from the helicopter had been recovered
© Kolganov Andrey
