By Brinda Patel
Staff Writer
Whilst approaching the Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, an American Airlines passenger plane collided midair with a United States military helicopter at 8:48 p.m on Jan. 29 in Washington, D.C. over the Potomac River.
The Bombardier CRJ700 jet was nearly full, flying from Kansas. The U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter was carrying three trainees. When the two aircrafts converged, an intense orange blaze was visible, followed by a veil of smoke from the burning wreckage. Both aircrafts descended rapidly into the Potomac.
There were no survivors; a total of 67 people died.
Crash victims included 12 young figure skaters and four figure skating coaches. Other victims included the American Airlines crew, financial and IT professionals, a lawyer, a law professor, college students and multiple union members.
The wreckage of the American Airlines plane was lifted out of the Potomac River on Feb. 3, and taken to a hangar for further examination by the National Transportation Safety Board.
The Trump Administration and Federal Aviation Administration restricted any and all helicopter traffic around the Ronald Reagan Airport.
The cause of the collision has not been determined. There were no poor weather conditions, it was a clear night. The ongoing investigation released data from the moments before the collision. It showed the military helicopter fluctuating its path away from the prescribed route along the east side of the river multiple times.
Black boxes, the flight data recorders, have been recovered from both aircrafts.
All three crew members of the Black Hawk have been identified. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth reported that the pilots were “fairly experienced” and were conducting an annual night training mission, also known as a “check ride.”
On Feb. 1, a female Black Hawk pilot was identified. At the request of her family, the Army is withholding disclosure of the pilot’s name. Two soldiers, Sgt. Ryan Austin O’Hara and Chief Warrant Officer Andrew Loyd Eaves, have been identified.
This is now the deadliest U.S. Aviation crash in nearly 25 years. The last major plane crash occurred when a Colgan Air flight crashed on Feb. 12, 2009, near Buffalo, New York, killing all 49 passengers and crew. One person was killed on the ground.
As of Feb. 4, all 67 victims had been recovered from the river. 66 out of 67 have been identified. The cause of the collision remains unproven.
