Deadliest U.S. Air Disaster in Two Decades: Regional Jet and Army Helicopter Collide Near Washington, D.C.

Deadliest U.S. Air Disaster in Two Decades: Regional Jet and Army Helicopter Collide Near Washington, D.C.

 Investigators are working to determine the cause of a tragic mid-air collision between a regional jet and a U.S. Army helicopter near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, which resulted in the deaths of 67 people. The crash, which occurred Wednesday night, is the deadliest U.S. air disaster in more than 20 years.

Authorities confirmed that an American Airlines Bombardier CRJ700 jet, operating as American Eagle Flight 5342, collided with a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter while preparing to land. The jet, carrying 60 passengers and four crew members, crashed into the Potomac River. There were no survivors.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has recovered the plane’s cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder, while the military helicopter’s recording devices are also being analyzed. A preliminary report is expected within 30 days.

Authorities have not yet identified the cause of the collision. U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy stated that both aircraft had been following standard flight patterns, and there had been no reported communication breakdowns. "Everything was routine up to the point of the accident," said Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin.

Investigators are also examining air traffic control procedures. At the time of the crash, only one controller was managing both plane and helicopter traffic, a situation described as “not normal” but reportedly acceptable given lower traffic volumes.

Among the deceased were citizens from Russia, the Philippines, Germany, and China. Several young figure skaters were also aboard the flight. Officials are in the process of identifying all victims, with many families still awaiting confirmation.

Rescue teams have recovered more than half of the bodies, and further searches are ongoing to locate missing wreckage.

The collision raises concerns about air safety in the Washington, D.C., region, which has one of the busiest airspaces in the country. Reagan National Airport handles over 800 daily flights and has seen multiple near-collisions in recent years.

A shortage of air traffic controllers in the U.S. has been a growing concern, with many controllers working mandatory overtime due to staffing shortages. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) currently has around 3,000 fewer controllers than needed.

The tragedy has taken on a political dimension, with President Donald Trump suggesting—without evidence—that diversity hiring policies could have played a role. He criticized air traffic controllers and military pilots, claiming that federal hiring standards had been lowered under his predecessor, Joe Biden.

However, transportation officials and rights groups dismissed Trump’s claims, accusing him of politicizing the disaster. U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg called Trump’s remarks “despicable” and emphasized that the FAA’s hiring policies had remained unchanged from Trump’s previous administration.

Radio communications reveal that air traffic controllers had warned the helicopter about the approaching jet and instructed it to change course. Seconds before impact, an air traffic controller was heard asking, “PAT25, do you have a CRJ in sight?” followed by an urgent order to pass behind the jet. Moments later, an explosion was seen over the Potomac River.

A webcam video captured the fiery collision, and emergency responders described a massive fireball before the aircraft disappeared from sight.

The NTSB and the Department of Defense will continue their investigations to determine the exact sequence of events that led to the crash. Meanwhile, American Airlines and the U.S. Army are reviewing safety procedures to prevent similar tragedies in the future.

This disaster marks the worst aviation accident in the U.S. since the November 2001 American Airlines crash near New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport, which claimed 265 lives.

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