• Black Hawk
• Fatal
• Mid-Air Crash
• Potomac River

FATALITIES CONFIRMED AFTER PASSENGER PLANE COLLIDES WITH ARMY BLACK HAWK NEAR WASHINGTON DC

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  Nicolas Adekeye / 1 month
• 0
• 2 min read

A devastating mid-air collision between American Airlines Flight 5342 and a US Army Black Hawk helicopter has resulted in confirmed fatalities, with rescuers yet to pull any survivors from the icy waters of the Potomac River. The passenger plane, carrying 64 people, including several members of the figure skating community, crashed near Reagan National Airport outside of Washington, DC. According to a law enforcement source, the aircraft is in pieces in the water, and the helicopter is nearby. The DC fire chief confirmed fatalities, and about 300 first responders are searching the freezing Potomac River. President Donald Trump described the crash as “a bad situation that looks like it should have been prevented” in a post on social media. Experts are trying to make sense of how DC’s sophisticated airspace system led to the evening tragedy. “It’s very clear, looking at the flight paths of the aircraft and the radio transmissions, that the Black Hawk was asked to maintain visual separation from Flight 5342 for some reason –– and we don’t know that reason,” said Tony Stanton from Australia’s Civil Aviation Safety Authority. The US Army Black Hawk that collided was on a training flight at the time of the incident. The aircraft involved have been identified as a Canadair Regional Jet 700, operated by American Airlines subsidiary PSA Airlines, and a US Army UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter. Air traffic controller audio captured the moment the air traffic control operators asked the helicopter if the commercial flight operated by PSA Airlines was in sight. Less than 13 seconds later, the audio captured audible gasps, including a loud “oooh” in the background, at the moment of the crash. The National Weather Service forecasts a slight chance of showers by 9 p.m. Thursday, increasing to steady rain by 1 a.m. Friday, which may impact search efforts. Rainfall and gusty winds are expected most of the day, with peak wind and rain expected between 10 a.m. and 7 p.m.