Emergency crews search for survivors after midair crash near Washington
A passenger jet and an Army helicopter collided midair near Reagan National Airport, prompting a large-scale search and rescue operation.
A passenger jet and an Army helicopter collided midair near Reagan National Airport, prompting a large-scale search and rescue operation.
A passenger jet and an Army helicopter collided midair near Reagan National Airport, prompting a large-scale search and rescue operation.
Warning: Viewer discretion is advised. Video shows plane collide with helicopter over Potomac River.
Emergency crews are searching for survivors after a passenger jet and an army helicopter collided midair near Reagan National Airport in Washington, D.C.
Crews worked through the night Wednesday and into Thursday morning as part of the search and rescue mission in the Potomac River.
First responders used white tarps to cover what appeared to be several body bags carried by boat from the Potomac to tents at a staging area. More boats hauled plane parts to shore.
it was one of their jets arriving from Wichita, Kansas, last night, carrying 60 passengers and four crew members.
The plane was on its final approach to land in Washington when it collided with the helicopter, which was conducting a training mission with three members on board.
More than 300 responders arrived within minutes of the crash.
They worked quickly to get boats and divers into the water, searching for survivors in cold and dark conditions described as "extremely rough."
"It's just dangerous and hard to work in," Chief John A. Donnelly of DC Fire and EMS said. "And because there's not a lot of lights, you're out there searching every square inch of space to see if you can find anybody."
"The divers are doing the same thing in the water. The water is dark. It is murky, and that is a very tough condition for them to dive in," Donnelly said.
All air traffic is paused at Reagan National Airport at least until 11 a.m. Thursday. DCA's main runway is one of the busiest in the country.
Emergency responders say their focus now is finding survivors and supporting the victims' families.
A federal investigation is underway, looking into how the crash happened.
U.S. Figure Skating confirmed in a statement to Hearst Television several members of their community were on the flight. They were athletes, coaches, and family returning home from a camp held in conjunction with the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Wichita. The association says they are devastated by this unspeakable tragedy.
The Hearst Television National Investigative Unit reviewed air traffic control tower audio, hearing the plane being cleared to land and the pilot of the passenger plane being asked and agreeing to use a different runway. There were audible gasps in the control tower as the plane was approaching the runway and the crash happened.
This is the deadliest U.S. commercial airplane crash since at least 2013 when Asiana Airlines Flight 214 crashed at San Francisco International Airport. Two people died.