This morning authorities said theyd pulled 27 bodies from the crash.
They dont expect to find any survivors.
The Black Hawk was flying a training mission out of nearby Fort Belvoir.
Part of the wreckage is seen as rescue boats search the waters of the Potomac River after a plane on approach to Reagan National Airport crashed into the river near Washington, DC, on January 30, 2025.© Photo by ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images
The jet was flying north towards its runway.
The helicopter was coming south from the fort.
They collided with each other just after 9 p.m. on Wednesday.
Recovery efforts are ongoing.
The hunt for an explanation or someone to blame has begun.
The airplane was on a perfect and routine line of approach to the airport, Trumpsaid on Truth Social.
The helicopter was going straight at the airplane for an extended period of time.
Why didnt the control tower tell the helicopter what to do instead of asking if they saw the plane.
This is a bad situation that looks like it should have been prevented.
NOT GOOD!!!
The Federal Aviation Administration is, at the moment, leaderless.
Michael Whitaker assumed the post in 2023 and announced his intention to resign back in December following Trumps victory.
Whitaker was a vocal critic of SpaceX and had chastised Elon Musks space program for skirting safety regulations.
The only way to bring them to heel, he said, was to levy massive fines.
At the moment,its unclearwho is running the FAA.
The administrator is a post that requires Senate confirmation but Trump hasnt named a successor.
So the FAA is officially leaderless after the first major mid-air collision in the U.S. in 16 years.
Hiring air traffic controllers is the number one safety issue according to the entire aviation industry.
Im not surprised by the Presidents dangerous and divisive actions, but the Administration must reverse course.
Lets get back to aviation safety and allow the FAA to do its job protecting the flying public.
Anybody else notice that all ATC job postings on usajobs have been removed besides DOD positions?
Ive been told that all vacancy announcements that closed before today will still go through the selection process.
Anyone else heard anything?
One Redditorsaid three days ago.
Conditions at some federally-run aviation towers are so bad that theyll soon be completely unstaffed.
News from the future, delivered to your present.
