Authorities said they believe there are no survivors after a passenger plane carrying 64 people collided midair with a military helicopter outside Ronald Reagan National Airport near Washington, D.C. late Wednesday, before falling into the Potomac River.
Search and rescue efforts are seen around a wreckage site in the Potomac River from Ronald Reagan ... [+]
In a press conference, Washington’s Fire and EMS Chief John Donnelly said they were switching over from a rescue operation to a recovery operation, adding “at this point we don’t believe there are any survivors.”
Donnelly added that responders have recovered the bodies of 27 of the 64 people onboard the plane and one of the three people onboard the Black Hawk helicopter.
Newly appointed Transport Secretary Sean Duffy said authorities located both the crashed aircraft and the passenger plane’s fuselage, which was in split into three and found in waist-deep water in the Potomac River.
After the crash, all takeoffs and landings were halted at Reagan National and officials said operations at the airport will remain halted at least until 11:00 a.m. EST on Thursday.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News host Sean Hannity that President Donald Trump has been briefed about the incident and both federal and local law enforcement are working “to try to save as many lives as possible.”
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A Bombardier CRJ700 regional jet operated by PSA Airlines, a regional carrier owned by American Airlines, collided with a Black Hawk military helicopter while approaching the runway at Reagan airport for landing. The incident took place shortly before 9 p.m. local time according to the FAA. The Bombardier jet—which originated in Wichita, Kansas—was carrying 60 passengers and four crew members, American Airlines said, making the flight fairly full, as a CRJ700 regional jet can usually seat between 60 and 80 passengers. The chopper involved in the crash was a U.S. Army Blackhawk helicopter carrying three people, Washington D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser confirmed in a press conference after midnight on Thursday.
In press conference early on Thursday John Donnelly, the chief of Washington’s fire and emergency medical services department, said the first units arrived at the scene at 8:58 p.m. local time, 10 minutes after they first received an alert, “and found an aircraft in the water and began rescue operations.” Donnelly said 300 emergency responders are on the scene and they are working on a “highly complex operation” due to “extremely rough” and windy conditions.
No official casualty count has been released yet, but Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., indicated there may be several fatalities during the press conference in. “When one person dies, it’s a tragedy, but when many, many, many people die, it’s an unbearable sorrow...It’s really hard when you lose probably over 60 Kansans simultaneously...It is such a tragedy that we lost them.” D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, however, noted that “The focus now is rescuing people, and that’s what all of our personnel are focused on.”
Details about the passengers on board the plane and the helicopter are limited. However, U.S. Figure Skating—the official governing body for figure skating in the U.S—said “several members” of its community were on the plane. “These athletes, coaches, and family members were returning home from the national development camp held in conjunction with the US figure skating championships in Wichita, Kansas.” Russian state news outlet TASS reported that a former world champion pairs figure skater duo from the country may have been onboard the plane.
In an official statement, President Donald Trump said “I have been fully briefed on the terrible accident which just took place at Reagan National Airport. May God Bless their souls. Thank you for the incredible work being done by our first responders. I am monitoring the situation and will provide more details as they arise.” The president later posted about the incident on his Truth Social platform and questioned the helicopter operator and air controllers’ handling of the situation. “The airplane was on a perfect and routine line of approach to the airport. The helicopter was going straight at the airplane for an extended period of time. It is a CLEAR NIGHT, the lights on the plane were blazing, why didn’t the helicopter go up or down, or turn. Why didn’t the control tower tell the helicopter what to do instead of asking if they saw the plane. This is a bad situation that looks like it should have been prevented. NOT GOOD!!!”
Vice President J.D. Vance wrote on X: “Please say a prayer for everyone involved in the mid-air collision near Reagan airport this evening. We're monitoring the situation, but for now let's hope for the best.” Transport Secretary Sean Duffy announced he was “on site at the FAA HQ and closely monitoring the situation,” while Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth noted the Pentagon was “actively monitoring” and is “Poised to assist if needed.” Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, Kristi Noem, tweeted: “We are deploying every available US Coast Guard resource for search and rescue efforts in this horrific incident at DCA.”
The next briefing about the accident will take place at 7.30 a.m. at the Reagan Airport, Bowser said on X.
The area around Reagan National Airport is heavily congested and tightly controlled, with a busy airport sitting in close proximity to sensitive sites like the Pentagon and Washington, D.C. Serious crashes involving large passenger jets are exceedingly rare in the United States. Wednesday’s incident is the first fatal crash of a U.S. commercial airliner since the the Colgan Air crash in upstate New York in 2009, which killed 50 people. The last crash on U.S. soil involving a commercial airliner took place in 2013, when a plane operated by South Korean carrier Asiana Airlines crashed in San Francisco, killing three people and injuring 187.
Passenger jet collides with Army helicopter while landing at Reagan Washington National Airport (Associated Press)