Washington DC Plane Crash: Authorities Recover 41 Bodies After Mid-air Collision

Authorities have recuperated 41 bodies after a plane crash in Washington DC.

Sixty-seven individuals were eliminated when an American Airlines jet and a military helicopter collided mid-air on Wednesday night. Up until now, 28 bodies have been identified.

Both aircraft crashed into the Potomac River after the crash. Some 300 workers were sent to the scene, however the rescue soon developed into a recovery objective as officials said there were no survivors.

Washington crash: Follow the current updates

Federal investigators have actually recovered the black boxes from the traveler jet, while authorities were still browsing for similar gadgets in the helicopter.

Meanwhile, amidst questions over how well the airport’s control tower was staffed on the night of the crash, it’s been confirmed that an air traffic control manager had let a controller leave their shift early.

The information, first reported by the New york city Times, has actually been validated to Sky News’ US partner NBC News by a source familiar with the investigation.

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It means a single controller was dealing with both plane and helicopter traffic in the area when the 2 airplane collided.

It is allowable – however not ideal – for one controller to do both tasks, NBC News reported.

The American Airlines jet was carrying 60 guests and 4 team when it crashed with the Black Hawk helicopter, bring three soldiers, soon before 9pm local time on Wednesday.

Flight 5342 was preparing to land on runway 33 at the Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport when it clashed with the helicopter in one of the most securely managed airspaces worldwide.

‘Em ergency lorries sped past me’

A guy whose better half was on the flight has remembered how he saw emergency services « speeding past » as he was waiting at the airport to pick her up.

Hamaad Raza informed NBC News his other half of 2 years, Asra, had actually « texted me [and] stated, ‘We’re landing in 20 minutes' ».

 » I was waiting and I began seeing a bunch of EMS lorries speeding past me … way a lot of, [more] than normal and my texts weren’t going through. »

Trump makes unverified variety drive claim

Donald Trump has connected a diversity drive at the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) under previous governments to the crash.

It has actually because been stated there is no evidence to support the US president’s claim.

Speaking at the White House on Thursday, Mr Trump suggested the diversity efforts had actually made air travel less safe.

At a White House press instruction on Friday, press secretary Karoline Leavitt stated Mr Trump had signed a memorandum directing an immediate assessment of FAA working with decisions made during the previous administration.

While Mr Trump’s claim appears to have actually been unmasked, there are concerns over staffing at Reagan Washington National Airport.

NBC News reported staffing in the air traffic control tower was « not regular », according to a preliminary FAA report.

The tower typically has a controller who focuses particularly on helicopter traffic – however at the time of the crash, a source stated, one controller was overseeing both aircraft and helicopter activity.

The FAA, employment which manages air traffic control along with certification of personnel and airplane, lacks a long-term administrator. Its previous manager Michael Whitaker stepped down on 20 January – the day of Mr Trump’s inauguration.

Follow Trump 100 on your podcast app Mr Trump has actually appointed an acting administrator, Chris Rocheleau, in the wake of the crash.

Mr Whitaker had clashed with Mr Trump’s confidante Elon Musk over the SpaceX rocket launches throughout his tenure at the FAA.

Since starting as head of the administration in October 2023, he was also forced to react to Boeing’s safety and quality issues, and worked to hire more air traffic controllers due to a lack of staff.

Find out more:.
Washington DC aircraft crash: What we know so far.
Air traffic control service heard diverting airplanes moments after collision

At his rundown, Mr Trump blamed former president Joe Biden for reducing requirements for air traffic controllers.

 » We need to have our smartest people, » he stated. « They need to be naturally gifted geniuses. »

Mr Trump added: « The FAA is actively recruiting employees who suffer severe intellectual impairments, psychiatric issues, and other mental and physical conditions under a variety and addition hiring effort defined on the agency’s website. »

The American Association of People with Disabilities reacted to these claims, saying in a declaration on X: « FAA employees with disabilities did not trigger [the] tragic plane crash.

 » The examination into the crash is still ongoing. It is very improper for the president to use this tragedy to press an anti-diversity hiring agenda. Doing so makes all less safe. »

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Mr Trump said after being sworn in last week, he signed an executive order which « restored the highest standards of air traffic controllers ».

At a later rundown, he was asked if gender or race played a role. He answered: « It might have, I don’t know.