
This is a breaking story with additional details unfolding live, but at the moment what we know is that there was an airborne collision that took place between a passenger plane (American Airlines Flight 5342) and a military BlackHawk helicopter which happened over the Potomac River near Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA).
The passenger flight, American Airlines Flight 5342, was flying from Wichita, Kansas, and was making its final approach to land on Reagan Washington National Airport’s runway 33.
UPDATE: Verified Go-Fund-Me campaigns have been compiled
To provide financial support to the families impacted by the plane collision, Go-Fund-Me has compiled a series of verified donation pages.
UPDATE: Statement from FAA
UPDATE: D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser
According to Mayor Bowser, “The National Transportation Safety Board continues to investigate.” The organization will host a separate briefing at a time shortly with their findings, whether that is to share preliminary findings from their investigation or if it will not be held until
The organization would hold a briefing later, officials said.
UPDATE: American Airlines CEO Robert Isom
“Just before 9 p.m. local time, on final approach into Reagan National, it collided with a military aircraft on an otherwise normal approach. At this time, we don’t know why the military aircraft came into the path of the PSA aircraft.”
UPDATE: Washington, D.C.’s Fire and EMS Chief John Donnelly
UPDATE: Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy
According to the newly appointed Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy, “[both the helicopter and plane] were in a standard [flight] pattern.” – This confirms that neither of the two vehicles involved in the collision flew in an abnormal path leading up to the collision.
UPDATE: Profession figure skaters, including past world champion skaters from Russia, reportedly among passengers
According to Russian state news agency TASS, there were two world-champion figure skaters on American Airlines Flight 5342.
There were likely, according to reports from CNN’s latest update, American figure skaters that attended a National Development Camp aimed at preparing youth talent to compete at the highest level.
UPDATE: Road Closures in the D.C. Area as a result of the recovery response effort
The following roads are closed until further notice:
- Potomac Avenue from South Capitol Street to 2nd Street, SW
- 2nd Street from Q Street to V Street, SW
- First Street from Q Street to V Street, SW
- Half Street from Q Street to V Street, SW
- V Street from 2nd Street to Half Street, SW
UPDATE: Statements from American Airlines + Reagan Airport
How many passengers were involved in the crash?
DC Mayor Muriel Bowser confirmed there were 60 total passengers and 4 crew members on board the American Airlines flight and a total of 3 military personnel in the helicopter.
In total, there are currently 67 individuals being searched for at the crash site over the Potomac with rescue teams operating in up to eight feet of water trying to locate, rescue, and identify any potential survivors.
According to Mayor Bowser, the National Transportation Safety Board will lead the recovery and investigation. However, the search and rescue operation has already involved local and federal agencies, including the FBI’s underwater search and rescue team.
If you believe you might have had a loved one on board this flight, American Airlines is encouraging you to call their toll-free hotline to provide any additional information that may help with the search: 800-679-8215.
Have any survivors been rescued?
While no official statement has been made about any survivors being rescued – the unique challenges that come with the time of the incident (freezing temperatures, limited visibility, the depth of the Potomac, and strong winds) made any potential rescue operation particularly dire and challenging.
Sadly, CNN has reported that there is a “somber” mood amongst officials at Reagan Washington National Airport, indicating that this could potentially be the worst aviation accident Washington has had in decades.
UPDATE: According to D.C.’s Fire and EMS Chief John Donnelly, “We don’t believe there are any survivors from this accident”.
How did the D.C. plane crash even happen?
According to air traffic controller audio obtained by CNN from LiveATC.net leading up to the collision, traffic control operators could be heard asking the helicopter if the passenger plane was in sight:
An air traffic control operator said, “PAT 2-5 do you have the CRJ in sight?”
The controller then followed up with, “PAT 2-5 pass behind the CRJ.”
This means that the air traffic controller reached out to the pilot of the helicopter and instructed them to fly behind the American Airlines plane, however, it’s not clear at this point why this communication was not enough to avoid the crash.
Even President Trump was quick to acknowledge that the collision, “looks like it should have been prevented”, which he wrote in a post on his Truth Social platform.
What we know about the helicopter and plane’s flight paths
While it is common for military helicopters to fly in the airspace over the Potomac for training and drilling purposes, it’s not currently clear why they were flying in such a direct path directly into active airspace near the airport’s landing zone.
What we know for sure, is that the American Airlines flight was given proper authority from air traffic controllers to land at Reagan’s runway 33 and while making its final descent to land, collided with a military Black Hawk helicopter (which had been advised by air traffic controllers to pass behind the plane).
What is happening to flights at Reagan Washington National Airport?
Currently, the airport has been closed and the FFA confirmed it will remain closed until at least 11 am on Thursday to allow rescue aircraft to fly throughout the airspace without impacting commercial flights.
Airport representatives encouraged impacted travelers to reach out to ‘airline representatives’ to determine what would be the next course of action in each case.
Regarding airborne flights that were slated to land at DCA, there were a total of 19 aircraft that had to be diverted to Dulles International Airport to safely land.