Helicopter that smashed into American Airlines flight in Washington on 'training flight'
Helicopter that smashed into American Airlines flight in Washington on 'training flight'
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A US Army Black Hawk helicopter that collided mid-air with an American Airlines flight carrying 60 passengers was on a "training flight", according to authorities. Heather Chairez, spokesperson for Joint Task Force-National Capital Region, revealed the UH-60 Black Hawk, based at Fort Belvoir in Virginia, was on a training flight when it crashed with the passenger aircraft over the Potomac River just before 9pm local time.
"We can confirm that the aircraft involved in tonight’s incident was an Army UH-60 helicopter from Bravo Company, 12th Aviation Battalion, out of Davison Army Airfield, Fort Belvoir during a training flight. We are working with local officials and will provide additional information once it becomes available.". The passenger flight that had departed from Wichita, Kansas, collided with the military helicopter on a training flight while on approach to an airport runway. It occurred in some of the most tightly controlled and monitored airspace in the world, just over three miles south of the White House and the Capitol.
More than 300 rescuers are now searching the wreckage in the freezing Potomac River after the American Airlines aircraft carrying 64 people and a helicopter with three military personnel crashed in mid-air. Passengers on the flight included a group of figure skaters, their coaches and family members who were returning from a development camp that followed the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Wichita. “We are devastated by this unspeakable tragedy and hold the victims’ families closely in our hearts,” U.S. Figure Skating said in a statement.
American Airlines CEO Robert Isom expressed “deep sorrow” for the crash and said the company was focused on the needs of passengers, crew, first responders and families and loved ones of those involved. Inflatable rescue boats were launched into the Potomac River from a point along the George Washington Parkway, just north of the airport, and first responders set up light towers from the shore to illuminate the area near the collision site. At least a half-dozen boats were scanning the water using searchlights.
“It’s a highly complex operation,” said D.C. fire chief John Donnelly. “The conditions out there are extremely rough for the responders.”. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, just sworn in earlier this week, said at a somber news conference at the airport early Thursday that his agency would provide all possible resources to the investigation. Reagan Airport will reopen at 11 a.m. Thursday, the Federal Aviation Administration announced.
