Pete Hegseth, chief of the Defense Department, announced Thursday that the Pentagon and Army are investigating the collision over Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in an unexpected first test for the newly minted secretary.

“Absolutely tragic,” he posted on X. “Search and rescue efforts still ongoing. Prayers for all impacted souls, and their families. Investigation launched immediately by Army & DoD.”

Mr. Hegseth’s post was accompanied by a statement from the Department of Defense confirming that the Army helicopter in Wednesday night’s collision was on a training flight. 

Mr. Hegseth said the soldiers on the helicopter were participating in an annual proficiency training flight. He added that the soldiers were all “fairly experienced” and were using night vision goggles. 

“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. “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.”

The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board also launched investigations. 

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According to the Pentagon, the helicopter was a UH-60 Black Hawk out of Davison Army Airfield at Fort Belvoir in Virginia.

The American Airlines’ Flight 5342 was operated by regional PSA Airlines and was on final approach from Wichita, Kansas.

Footage of the collision, captured from a Kennedy Center security camera, showed the two aircraft colliding in a ball of fire. 

Flights out of Reagan Airport have been halted temporarily as authorities assess the wreckage. So far, authorities have pulled at least 27 bodies from the wreckage, with health officers suggesting there are likely no survivors. 

• Vaughn Cockayne can be reached at vcockayne@washingtontimes.com.