ARLINGTON, Va. — A tragic midair collision between an American Airlines jet and an Army helicopter claimed the lives of all aboard both aircraft near the Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport on Wednesday night, sparking a broad investigative and recovery effort. Officials confirmed the deaths of 64 passengers and crew on the jet, along with three Army personnel aboard the helicopter.
The incident has shocked the community and called attention to flight safety protocols as investigators sift through the wreckage for clues. The collision took place as the jet, inbound from Wichita with a group of U.S. and Russian figure skaters returning from a competition, was making its landing approach. The helicopter was reportedly on a routine training flight when it veered into the jet’s path.
Search and rescue teams worked into the early hours, pulling bodies from the icy waters of the Potomac River and combing through scattered debris along the riverbank. Operations shifted from rescue to recovery Thursday morning with little hope remaining for finding any survivors.
“All indications suggest this will stand as one of the deadliest U.S. aviation disasters in nearly a quarter-century,” stated a somber John Donnelly, chief of the Fire Department in Washington, D.C., during a news update. The crash site, strewn with three fragmented sections of the jet and the mangled remains of the helicopter, extended southwards from the airport up to the Woodrow Wilson Bridge.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, facing the first major crisis since his swearing in, reaffirmed his commitment to safety. “This tragic event underscores the paramount importance of securing the safety and integrity of American airspace,” Duffy said.
The newly appointed Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who did not appear at the press conference, is expected to address the media later. Meanwhile, President Donald Trump has criticized the Federal Aviation Administration’s diverse hiring policies, suggesting that they may have contributed to the lapse in safety, although investigations are still ongoing. Trump also hinted at possible significant changes to staffing within federal aviation agencies, depending on the findings of the ongoing investigations.
Authorities have yet to fully understand the sequence of the events that led to the calamity. Early reports indicate that both the aircraft and the helicopter were in communication with the control tower and operating under normal flight conditions. However, less than 30 seconds before the crash, the air traffic controller was querying the helicopter’s awareness of the incoming jet.
The accident raises questions about the sequence of approvals and flight path configurations that led to the collision. Witnesses and officials described a clear night where the pilot of the jet was instructed to land on an alternate runway minutes before the disaster.
The National Transportation Safety Board has launched a comprehensive investigation into the crash, examining air traffic control communications, pilot protocols, and all potential missteps. The findings will serve as crucial inputs to possibly revising national flight safety standards.
As the Reagan National Airport resumed operations Thursday late morning, the broader implications of the tragedy loom, pressing on the urgency to reassess and potentially overhaul current aviation safety measures to prevent future incidents.