The Army on Friday identified two of the three soldiers believed to be dead after their UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter collided with a commercial airplane in the skies near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport earlier this week.

Army officials confirmed that Staff Sgt. Ryan Austin O’Hara, 28, of Lilburn, Georgia, is believed to be dead. Chief Warrant Officer 2 Andrew Loyd Eaves, 39, of Great Mills, Maryland, was also on board. His remains have not yet been recovered and his official status remains “duty status-whereabouts unknown,” the Army said in a statement.

The name of the third soldier was not released at the request of the family.

“Our deepest condolences go out to all the families and friends impacted during this tragedy, and we will support them through this difficult time. Our top priority is to assist in the recovery efforts, while fully cooperating with … investigative agencies to determine the cause of this tragic incident,” Maj. Gen. Trevor J. Bredenkamp, commander of Joint Task Force – National Capital Region/ U.S. Army Military District of Washington, said in a statement Friday.

Chief Warrant Officer 2 Eaves spent a decade in the Navy before joining the Army as a Black Hawk pilot in 2017, the Army said. Staff Sgt. O’Hara had been a helicopter repairer in the Army since 2014. He served a six-month tour in Afghanistan in 2017.

The exact reasons for the crash remain under investigation, but top government officials — including President Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth — have made clear that they believe the military aircraft bears blame.

“We anticipate that the investigation will quickly be able to determine whether the aircraft was in the corridor and at the right altitude at the time of the incident,” Mr. Hegseth said at a press conference Thursday. “It’s a tragedy. A horrible loss of life for those 64 souls on that civilian airliner and of course the three soldiers in that Black Hawk.”

• Ben Wolfgang can be reached at bwolfgang@washingtontimes.com.