DC crash: Army's 'extraordinary step' over female pilot in Washington disaster
DC crash: Army's 'extraordinary step' over female pilot in Washington disaster
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The US Army has refused to identify the female co-pilot of the helicopter in the DC air disaster at the request of the family. The unusual move has been described as an "extraordinary step" as the two other soldiers on the chopper have been named by authorities as Chief Warrant Office 2 Andrew Eaves and crew chief Staff Sergeant Ryan O'Hara. But the relatives of the other soldier have requested her name isn't disclosed to the media - an uncommon ask in order to respect their privacy. The US Army said: "At the request of the family, the name of the third soldier will not be released at this time.".
Military personnel killed in accidents or combat are usually made public 24 hours after their families are notified, making withholding her name very unusual. The New York Times called the decision to withhold the woman's name an "extraordinary step.". It is understood she had about 500 hours of flying of experience, which is considered a "normal" amount, and her "very experienced" colleagues had about 1,000 hours.
All three soldiers were among the 67 people killed in the disaster in Washington DC, US, on Wednesday night. The cause of the investigation continues. The American Airlines plane was arriving from Wichita, Kansas and the 60 doomed passengers included a group of figure skaters who were returning from a competition. O’Hara and the co-pilot's bodies have been recovered but Eaves is still in the water along with several of the airline passengers.
At least 30 bodies have been recovered from the wreckage following the devastating midair collision in the US capital, which saw the mangled aircraft plunge into the freezing Potomac River. These include popular 13-year-old TikTok skating star Jinna Han, and sisters Everly and Alydia Livingston, aged 14 and 11 respectively. Russian figure skating champions and renowned athlete couple Evgenia Shishkova, 53, and Vadim Naumov, 56, also lost their lives. Tributes have also poured in for popular mum-of-two Wendy Jo Shaffer, described by her partner an "unwavering spirit." He added: "I'm still waiting to wake up from this nightmare, but I fear this is the truth.".
