By LOLITA C. BALDOR, TARA COPP and ERIC TUCKER, Related Press
ARLINGTON, Va. (AP) — A jet carrying 60 passengers and 4 crew members collided Wednesday with an Military helicopter whereas touchdown at Ronald Reagan Nationwide Airport close to Washington, prompting a big search-and-rescue operation within the close by Potomac River. There have been a number of fatalities, in accordance with an individual aware of the matter, however the exact variety of victims was unclear as rescue crews hunted for any survivors.
Right here’s what we all know up to now:
- What occurred? The Federal Aviation Administration stated the midair collision occurred round 9 p.m. EST when a regional jet that had departed from Wichita, Kansas, crashed right into a army Blackhawk helicopter whereas on strategy to an airport runway.
- Was anybody harm? There was no speedy phrase on casualties. American Airways says 60 passengers and 4 crew members had been on the airplane.
- What do we all know concerning the passenger jet? American Airways flight 5342 was inbound to Reagan Nationwide at an altitude of about 400 toes and a velocity of about 140 miles per hour when it suffered a speedy lack of altitude. The Canadian-made Bombardier CRJ-701 twin-engine jet was manufactured in 2004.
Three troopers had been onboard the helicopter, an Military official stated. There was no speedy phrase on the reason for the collision, however all takeoffs and landings from the airport had been halted whereas helicopters from regulation enforcement companies throughout the area flew over the scene. Inflatable rescue boats had been launched into the Potomac River from a degree alongside the George Washington Parkway, simply north of the airport, and first responders arrange gentle towers from the shore to light up the world close to the collision website. No less than a half-dozen boats are scanning the water utilizing search lights..
President Donald Trump stated he had been “absolutely briefed on this horrible accident” and, referring to the passengers, added, “Could God Bless their souls.”
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The Federal Aviation Administration stated the midair crash occurred round 9 p.m. EST when a regional jet that had departed from Wichita, Kansas, collided with a army helicopter on a coaching flight whereas on strategy to an airport runway. It occurred in among the most tightly managed and monitored airspace on this planet, simply over three miles south of the White Home and the Capitol.
Investigators will attempt to piece collectively the aircrafts’ closing moments earlier than their collision, together with contact with air site visitors controllers in addition to a lack of altitude by the passenger jet.
American Airways Flight 5342 was inbound to Reagan Nationwide at an altitude of about 400 toes and a velocity of about 140 miles per hour when it suffered a speedy lack of altitude over the Potomac River, in accordance with knowledge from its radio transponder. The Canadian-made Bombardier CRJ-701 twin-engine jet, manufactured in 2004, might be configured to hold as much as 70 passengers.
A couple of minutes earlier than touchdown, air site visitors controllers requested the arrival business jet if it might land on the shorter Runway 33 at Reagan Nationwide and the pilots stated they had been ready. Controllers then cleared the airplane to land on Runway 33. Flight monitoring websites confirmed the airplane modify its strategy to the brand new runway.
Lower than 30 seconds earlier than the crash, an air site visitors controller requested the helicopter if it had the arrival airplane in sight. The controller made one other radio name to the helicopter moments later: “PAT 25 cross behind the CRJ.” Seconds after that, the 2 plane collided.
The airplane’s radio transponder stopped transmitting about 2,400 toes in need of the runway, roughly over the center of the river.
Video from an statement digital camera on the close by Kennedy Heart confirmed two units of lights in keeping with plane showing to affix in a fireball.
The collision occurred on a heat winter night in Washington, with temperatures registering as excessive as 60 levels Fahrenheit, following a stretch days earlier of intense chilly and ice. On Wednesday, the Potomac River was 36 levels Fahrenheit, in accordance with the Nationwide Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The Nationwide Climate Service reported that wind gusts of as much as 25 mph had been attainable within the space all through the night.
The U.S. Military described the helicopter as a UH-60 Blackhawk based mostly at Fort Belvoir in Virginia. The helicopter was on a coaching flight. Navy plane continuously conduct coaching flights in and across the congested and heavily-restricted airspace across the nation’s capital for familiarization and continuity of presidency planning.
The crash is serving as a serious check for 2 of the Trump administration’s latest company leaders. Pete Hegseth, sworn in days in the past as protection secretary, posted on social media that an investigation has been “launched instantly” by the Military and the Protection Division. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, simply sworn in earlier this week, stated in a social media publish that he was “on the FAA HQ and intently monitoring the state of affairs.”
The airport was to stay closed till 5 a.m. Friday.
Situated alongside the Potomac River, simply southwest of town. Reagan Nationwide is a well-liked alternative as a result of it’s a lot nearer than the bigger Dulles Worldwide Airport, which is deeper in Virginia.
Relying on the runway getting used, flights into Reagan can provide passengers spectacular views of landmarks just like the Washington Monument, the Lincoln Memorial, the Nationwide Mall and the U.S. Capitol. It’s a postcard-worthy welcome for vacationers visiting town.
The incident recalled the crash of an Air Florida flight that plummeted into the Potomac on January 13, 1982, that killed 78 individuals. That crash was attributed to dangerous climate.
The final deadly crash involving a U.S. business airline occured in 2009 close to Buffalo, New York. Everybody aboard the Bombardier DHC-8 propeller airplane was killed, together with 45 passengers, 2 pilots and a pair of flight attendants. One other individual on the bottom additionally died, bringing the overall loss of life toll to 50. An investigation decided that the captain unintentionally brought about the airplane to stall because it approached the airport in Buffalo.
Related Press writers Zeke Miller, Meg Kinnard and Chris Megerian in Washington contributed to this report.
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