[Sixty-seven people are presumed dead after a passenger plane, American Airlines Flight 5342, operated by PSA Airlines, collided in mid-air with a US Army helicopter on Wednesday night while approaching Reagan National Airport near Washington, DC. The crash sent both aircraft into the Potomac River below.
There were 64 people on board the plane and three soldiers in the Army helicopter. The passenger plane was traveling from Wichita, Kansas to Reagan National Airport when the accident occurred, and was scheduled to land around 9:30pm on Wednesday night.
“We were due to land at 9:30 and then the unthinkable happened,” said DC Mayor Muriel Bowser.
First responders were battling cold and windy conditions to recover bodies from the Potomac River in near-freezing temperatures.
“This was a dark and excruciating night in our nation’s capital and in our nation’s history, and a tragedy of terrible proportions,” said President Donald Trump in a news conference on Thursday. “As one nation, we grieve for every precious soul that has been taken from us so suddenly.”
The US Army Black Hawk helicopter was conducting a routine training exercise for pilots who take part in “continuity of government” missions, according to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
The crash is the deadliest aviation disaster in the United States since November 12, 2001, when an American Airlines flight crashed in New York, killing all 260 people on board.
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