Opening summary
Hello and welcome to the Guardian’s live coverage of Wednesday’s night’s collision between a regional passenger jet and a military helicopter near Washington DC’s Reagan airport.
The flight data and cockpit voice recorders have been recovered from the American Airlines flight, National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has announced, and they are now at the NTSB’s labs for evaluation.
The NTSB said earlier on Thursday that it was too soon to determine the causes of the disaster and pledged to release a preliminary report within 30 days.
Early scrutiny focused on an initial Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) report on the incident which called the staffing levels at a DC air control tower “not normal,” since one controller was reportedly handling both helicopters and planes.
But the Associated Press and CNN have both reported that sources told them this level of staffing was, in fact, “normal” or “not uncommon.” The FAA has long struggled with a shortage of air traffic controllers and identified fatigue as a factor that might lead to mistakes, the Associated Press noted.
Here’s a summary of other developments:
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With the 67 people aboard both the American Airlines flight and the army Black Hawk helicopter all presumed dead, the collision is being called “the deadliest aviation disaster” in the US since 2001. At least 28 bodies have been recovered from the Potomac River, with recovery operations ongoing.
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A day before Wednesday night’s midair collision near Reagan airport, a different jet there had to abort its landing and make a second approach after a helicopter appeared near its flight path, the Washington Post reported.
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The US army saw an increase in very serious aviation incidents during the last fiscal year, with 15 flight and two ground incidents that resulted in deaths of service members, destruction of aircraft, or more than $2.5m in damage to the airframe, the Associated Press reported,
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Donald Trump and members of his administration claimed, without evidence, that diversity efforts at the FAA under the Biden and Obama administration could be to blame for the crash, with Trump specifically claiming that the FAA had been accused of being “too white,” and suggesting efforts to hire Americans with disabilities were irresponsible.
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Trump signed an executive order that rolls back diversity initiatives to stop “woke policies” in federal aviation.
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The Trump administration’s choice to draw an unfounded connection between a deadly tragedy and diversity initiatives at a press conference sparked broad condemnation from Democratic politicians. They called the comments “disgusting,” “despicable,” and “racist,” with Democratic minority leader Hakeem Jeffries saying that Trump was “blaming women and people of color for the deadly plane crash.”
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As many as 14 skaters and coaches, including two 16-year-olds and a married pair of world champions, were onboard the American Airlines plane. The Skating Club of Boston said Jinna Han and Spencer Lane, both aged 16, and the Russian-born ice skating coaches and former world champions Yevgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov, who were husband and wife, were on the flight.
Key events
Alarms were raised about ‘congested’ airspace before fatal Washington crash
George Joseph
Reporting by George Joseph and Joanna Walters.
After Wednesday’s fatal crash which took down a commercial jet and a military helicopter on a training flight at Washington DC’s Reagan National airport, public officials and aviation experts are resurfacing concerns about how uniquely congested the airspace is around the country’s capital.
As of Thursday night, authorities have said all 64 people on the American Airlines flight were presumed dead as well as three more on the army helicopter, making the incident the deadliest US air tragedy since 2001.
On Thursday, during his confirmation hearing before the Senate armed services committee, Daniel Driscoll, Donald Trump’s nominee for secretary of the army, questioned why military helicopters need to conduct training exercises near such a busy commercial airport.
Driscoll told lawmakers that the incident seemed “preventable” and vowed to review army practices.
“There are appropriate times to take risk and inappropriate times to take risk,” he noted. “I think we need to look at where is an appropriate time to take training risk, and it may not be at an airport like Reagan.”
The US military has provided little information on its helicopter training activities near the capital and did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Martin Chalk, a former British Airways captain who retired in 2020, posited that military pilots might need to train in this particular area to prepare for transporting senior political and military figures to and from the area, which is close to the Pentagon as well as the White House, Capitol Hill and other buildings at the heart of the federal government.
“The military tend to have a bit of a law-unto-themselves approach,” he said, explaining that military pilots do not have to follow all civil aviation protocols.
He emphasised that it is not clear yet exactly what happened but he suggested that investigators could ask questions about the exchanges between the aircraft and the tower.
Anna Betts
Among the confirmed victims of the American Airlines jet carrying 64 people that collided in midair with an army Black Hawk helicopter carrying three soldiers were young figure skaters returning from the US figure skating championships, along with their parents and coaches, and a North Carolina-based flight attendant.
The Skating Club of Boston said in a statement on Thursday that Jinna Han and Spencer Lane, along with their parents Jin Han and Christine Lane and coaches Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov were aboard the plane on Wednesday night.
The group was returning from the US figure skating national development camp, a program for “young competitive skaters of tomorrow”, following last week’s US championships in Wichita, Kansas.
“Our sport and this club have suffered a horrible loss with this tragedy,” said Doug Zeghibe, the CEO and director of the Skating Club of Boston.
Skating is a tight-knit community where parents and kids come together six or seven days a week to train and work together. Everyone is like family. We are devastated and completely at a loss for words.”
The most recent post on Lane’s Instagram profile was a photograph from the inside of a plane on a runway, with the caption “ICT -> DCA” – the codes for Wichita Dwight D Eisenhower National airport and Ronald Reagan Washington National airport in Washington DC.
Lane was reportedly 16 years old, and from Barrington, Rhode Island, according to Reuters.
What does the NTSB do and how will the investigation work?
National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) chair, Jennifer Hommendy, described the investigation into the crash on Wednesday night as an “all-hands-on-deck event” for the agency during a news conference on Thursday in which she appeared with members of the board and a senior investigator overseeing the investigation.
The Associated Press (AP) have put together this useful explainer on what the NTSB are and what they do:
What does the agency do?
The NTSB is an independent federal agency responsible for investigating all civil aviation accidents as well as serious incidents in the US involving other modes of transportation, such as train disasters and major accidents involving motor vehicles, marine vessels, pipelines and even commercial space operators.
“We’re here to ensure the American people that we are going to leave no stone unturned in this investigation,” Hommendy said, noting the investigation is in the very early stages. “We are going to conduct a thorough investigation of this entire tragedy, looking at the facts.”
The agency has five board members who serve five-year terms and are nominated by the president and confirmed by the US Senate.
How will the investigation work?
For the investigation into Wednesday’s crash, the NTSB will establish several different working groups, each responsible for investigating different areas connected to the accident, board member Todd Inman said.
Inman said those groups include operations, which will examine flight history and crewmember duties; structures, which will document airframe wreckage and the accident scene; power plants, which will focus on aircraft engines and engine accessories; systems, which will study the electrical, hydraulic and pneumatic components of the two aircraft; air traffic control, which will review flight track surveillance information, including radar, and controller-pilot communications; survival factors, which will analyse the injuries to the crew and passengers and crash and rescue efforts; and a helicopter group.
The investigation also will include a human-performance group that will be a part of the operations, air traffic control and helicopter groups and will study the crew performance and any factors that could be involved such as human error, including fatigue, medications, medical histories, training and workload, Inman said.
How long will the investigation take?
NTSB officials did not say on Thursday how long the investigation would take, but accident investigations often take between one and two years to complete.
The agency typically releases a preliminary report within a few weeks of the accident that includes a synopsis of information collected at the scene.
What we know on day two
A regional passenger jet from Wichita, Kansas collided with a military helicopter approaching Ronald Reagan National airport near Washington DC late on Wednesday, killing all 64 people onboard the plane and three soldiers in the helicopter. Here’s what we know a day after the crash:
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Investigators have recovered the cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder from American Eagle flight 5342, an American Airlines flight operated by PSA, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) announced late on Thursday. The recorders are now at the NTSB’s labs for evaluation. Board member Todd Inman said officials aimed to release a preliminary report into the incident within 30 days.
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At least 27 bodies have been recovered from the plane and one from the Black Hawk helicopter which crashed into the Potomac River. The Bombardier CRJ-700 jet broke into three parts and was in waist-deep water in the Potomac. More than 300 emergency workers, including divers, weathered high winds and packed ice to retrieve pieces of the plane and bodies.
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As many as 14 skaters and coaches, including two 16-year-olds and a married pair of world champions, were onboard the American Airlines plane. The Skating Club of Boston said Jinna Han and Spencer Lane, both aged 16, were on the plane. The club also said the Russian-born ice skating coaches and former world champions Yevgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov, who were husband and wife, were onboard. Other victims included ice-skating coach Alexandr Kirsanov, and two of his young students Angela Yang and Sean Kay.
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Two Chinese citizens were also on the plane, state media reported citing the Chinese embassy. Senator Maria Cantwell said that the dead on the plane also included citizens from Russia, the Philippines and Germany.
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The pilot and first officer on the American Airlines flight were named as Jonathan Campos and Sam Lilley in media reports. Campos was 34 and Lilley 28, it was reported.
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President Donald Trump has been strongly criticised by Democrats after suggesting that the previous administration’s diversity policies were responsible for the crash. In a press conference, Trump told reporters, “We had the highest standard [of air traffic controllers in his first administration] that you could have, and then they changed it back – that was Biden,” Trump said, adding that he believed the changes were made as part of diversity programs that his administration was vowed to repeal.
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Hakeem Jeffries, the Democratic House minority leader, said Trump had used the collision to “peddle lies, conspiracy theories, and attack people of color and women without any basis whatsoever”. He continued: “Have you no decency? Have you no respect for the families whose lives have been turned upside down?”
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Journalists also highlighted another exchange between the president and journalists. Trump responded to a question about whether he was going to visit the scene of the plane crash by saying: “What’s the site? The water? You want me to go swimming?”
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Trump later signed another executive order that officials said would stop “woke policies” in federal aviation. Trump had already signed an executive order ending diversity initiatives at the Federal Aviation Administration last week.
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Conflicting reports have emerged about whether staffing levels at Ronald Reagan national airport were “not normal”. According to an initial Federal Aviation Administration report, obtained by the New York Times, the Associated Press and others, staffing levels were “not normal for the time of day and volume of traffic”. According to the report, one air traffic controller was responsible for coordinating helicopter traffic and arriving and departing planes when the collision happened, the Associated Press reported, and that configuration was described as “not normal”.
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But a person familiar with the matter told the Associated Press that staffing at the air traffic control tower on Wednesday night was, in fact, at a normal level. The positions are regularly combined when controllers need to step away from the console for breaks or are in the process of a shift change, or air traffic is slow, the person said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal procedures.
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Pete Hegseth, the defense secretary, said the Pentagon had launched an investigation. He added that the army helicopter crew involved in the collision was “fairly experienced”. Describing the flight as an “annual proficiency training flight”, Hegseth said: “They did have night vision goggles.”
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Both the helicopter and the passenger plane had been flying in a “standard flight pattern” on a clear night before the crash, transportation secretary, Sean Duffy, said. He added that it was not uncommon for military aircraft to be seen in the skies over the nation’s capital, including near Reagan National, which is located in Arlington, Virginia.
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The American Airlines CEO, Robert Eisen, said: “At this time we don’t know why the military aircraft came into the path of the PSA aircraft.” He urged friends and family of those affected to call 1-800-679-8215, which is the helpline the airline has set up.
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A day before Wednesday night’s midair collision near Reagan airport, a different jet there had to abort its landing and make a second approach after a helicopter appeared near its flight path, the Washington Post reported.
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The US army saw an increase in very serious aviation incidents during the last fiscal year, with 15 flight and two ground incidents that resulted in deaths of service members, destruction of aircraft, or more than $2.5m in damage to the airframe, the Associated Press reported.
Senator Maria Cantwell, the top Democrat on the Senate commerce committee, questioned the safety of military and commercial flights separated by as little as 350 feet (107 m) vertically and horizontally, reports Reuters.
She also urged the government to reconsider allowing so many helicopter flights next to such a busy airport.
Philippines says its police officer among US plane crash victims
Agence France-Presse (AFP) has some more information on the news that a Filipino police officer was among the people killed in a mid-air crash in Washington between a US commercial jet and a military helicopter (see 6.16am GMT)
“The Philippine National Police mourns the tragic loss of police colonel Pergentino N. Malabed, chief of the supply management division, who was among those on board the American Airlines flight that collided mid-air with a US army Black Hawk helicopter near Reagan National airport,” an official statement said.
Manila was notified that a body carrying Malabed’s passport was recovered from the Potomac, police spokesperson Colonel Randulf Tuano told reporters.
Malabed’s widow is set to fly to the US to formally identify and claim the remains, Tuano added.
Malabed and two other officers had flown to the US to test personnel vests that the Philippine police planned to purchase, reports AFP. Malabed then headed onwards alone intending “to pay a courtesy call” to the police attache of the Philippine embassy in Washington.
Investigators plan to push forward on Friday with efforts to retrieve the two aircraft involved in a crash in Washington that killed 67 people and raised questions about air safety in the US capital, Reuters reports.
Fresh from recovering the so-called black boxes from the American Airlines plane that crashed into the Potomac River after colliding with an Army Black Hawk helicopter on Wednesday, divers aim to “salvage the aircraft” and find additional components on Friday, Washington’s fire department said.
“Overnight, boats will remain on scene for security and surface searches from local, state, and federal regional partners,” it said.
The National Transportation Safety Board is studying the cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder from the CRJ700 airplane, and is expected to provide a preliminary report in 30 days.
US transportation secretary Sean Duffy said late on Thursday that he will soon announce a plan to reform the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) after the devastating collision between an American Airlines regional plane and an Army helicopter killed 67 people.
“I am in the process of developing an initial plan to fix the @FAANews. I hope to put it out very shortly,” Duffy said on X, as reported by Reuters.
President Trump who has harshly criticised diversity efforts at the FAA, directed an immediate assessment of aviation safety on Thursday.
Earlier, Trump said he had appointed a former senior aviation official as the acting head of the FAA – just one day after the deadliest U.S. air disaster in more than 20 years.
Two lawyers, Sarah Lee Best and Elizabeth Anne Keys, were among those onboard the American Airlines flight, their lawfirm and families have confirmed in statements reported by CNN and other media. Wilkinson Stekloff, where they were both associated said in a statement:
We are heartbroken by this terrible tragedy. Liz and Sarah were cherished members of our firm – wonderful attorneys, colleagues and friends.
Keys died on what was her 33rd birthday, her family said in a statement to CNN affiliate WXIX. They wrote:
Words cannot express how deeply Elizabeth, my Bitsy, will be missed. We are filled with unbearable sorrow and despair at our loss.
Best, also 33, was a hard worker who always found time for kind gestures, her husband, Daniel Solomon, told the Washington Post.
He said the pair, who were due to celebrate their 10th wedding anniversary in February, had finally been planning to take their honeymoon in May. They were planning to go to Hawaii, where Sarah was born. He said:
We are each other’s world. I just can’t honestly imagine going through the rest of my life without her. She really touched the lives of anybody who got to know her.
A Filipino police colonel was also among the fatalities in the deadly mid-are crash, the Philippine National Police (PNP) confirmed on Friday, as reported by the Inquirer.
The Philippine National Police mourns the tragic loss of Police Colonel Pergentino N. Malabed, chief of the Supply Management Division, who was among those on board the American Airlines flight that collided midair with a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter near Reagan National Airport in Washington, D.C., and crashed into the Potomac River on Wednesday night,” the PNP said in a statement.
No official list of the victims of the crash in DC have been given, but family and friends have identified three of the four members on the American Airlines flight as pilots Sam Lilley and Jonathan Campos and flight attendant Danasia Elder.
Here is what we know about them, as reported by Associated Press.
Sam Lilley knew he wanted to fly and began training to be a pilot, like his father, right out of college.
“You don’t really expect to meet people that find their purpose so early on in life, and Sam found his in flying,” said Kaitlin Sells, who met Lilley while they were students at Georgia Southern University.
Lilley was the first officer aboard the American Airlines jet carrying 60 passengers and four crew members that collided midair on Wednesday night.
In this photo provided by Kaitlin Marie Sells, Sam Lilley, left, pilots a small airplane that took off from Savannah, Ga., on Aug, 6, 2022, for a flight to reach the 1,500 flight hours required for Lilley to begin training to become an airline pilot. Photograph: Kaitlin Marie Sells/AP
Lilley’s father, Timothy Lilley, told WAGA-TV in Atlanta that he was in Washington waiting for answers.
“This is undoubtedly the worst day of my life,” said Timothy Lilley, who also is a longtime pilot and served as a US Army helicopter pilot for 20 years, noting he flew similar routes in and out of the Pentagon.
“I was so proud when Sam became a pilot,” he wrote on Facebook. “Now it hurts so bad I can’t even cry myself to sleep. I know I’ll see him again but my heart is breaking.”
Timothy Lilley said his son was excelling in his career and personal life at the time of his death and was engaged to be married later this year.
The captain of the American Airlines flight was 34-year-old Jonathan Campos, according to multiple media reports. His aunt, Beverly Lane, told the New York Times that Campos had wanted to be a pilot since the age of 3.
“I think he wanted to be free, and be able to fly and soar like a bird,” Lane said.
She told the newspaper she talked with Campos on Wednesday, just before the fateful flight. He told her he was looking forward to an upcoming Caribbean cruise with family.
Campos was a 2015 graduate of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, Florida, where he studied Aeronautical Science, according to the university.
Danasia Elder was a flight attendant on the commercial flight, WSOC-TV in Charlotte, North Carolina, reported.
Elder’s brother-in-law, Brandon Payne, described her as “full of life,” highlighting her love for God, her kids and travel. She was married with two children, Kayden and Dallas.
“She was a great wife, a great parent, a great friend,” Payne told the news station. “She was very bright, very smart. She was an entrepreneur. This flight attendant thing was kind of like one of her dreams she wanted to do.”
Payne said he is proud of his sister-in-law for pursuing her dream.
“She would want y’all do the same thing she did. Chase your dreams, no matter what. Don’t let nothing scare you, push you away. Just believe in yourself, believe in God, and follow the path,” Payne said.
Barack Obama pays tribute to victims of plane crash
“Our hearts break for the families who lost loved ones in the tragic plane and helicopter crash at DCA,” former president Barack Obama wrote in a post on X.
“Michelle and I send our prayers and condolences to everyone who is mourning today, and we’re grateful to the first responders who are doing everything they can to help under extremely difficult circumstances.”
Among those grief-stricken in the wake of the deadly crash in DC was Nancy Kerrigan, a former US women’s champion and two-time Olympic and world medalist based in Boston, where the World Figure Skating Championships will be held in March.
“Not sure how to process it,” she said, breaking down in tears. “When you find out you know some of the people on the plane, it’s an even bigger blow.”
As many as 14 skaters and coaches, including two 16-year-olds and a married pair of world champions, were onboard the American Airlines plane.
The Skating Club of Boston said Jinna Han and Spencer Lane, both aged 16, were on the plane.
The club also said the Russian-born ice skating coaches and former world champions Yevgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov, who were husband and wife, were onboard. Other victims included ice-skating coach Alexandr Kirsanov, and two of his young students Angela Yang and Sean Kay.
China says two citizens among US plane crash victims
China on Friday expressed “deep condolences” over a midair crash in Washington in which two of its nationals died, extending “sincere sympathies” to affected families.
“China has requested the US side to promptly update it on the progress of the search and rescue operations, swiftly clarify the cause of the accident and properly handle follow-up matters,” a spokesperson for Beijing’s foreign ministry said, as reported by Agence France Presse.
What we know so far:
If you are looking for a quick recap of the latest developments, here is a helpful explainer of what we know so far about the fatal aviation incident in Washington DC.
