President Donald Trump said there were no survivors after a mid-air collision between an American Airlines regional jet and a U.S. military Black Hawk helicopter in the Washington, D.C. area last night – the deadliest since 2001.
Trump also blamed Democratic policies without evidence.
At least 14 people are still missing, so efforts have been suspended for the night. Dozens of bodies have been pulled from the Potomac River where the plane crashed after the collision, multiple sources tell CNN. The plane, which took off from Wichita, Kansas, was carrying 64 people, while three soldiers were in the helicopter.
The National Transportation Safety Board, which is leading the investigation into the crash, said it had recovered the plane’s flight data and voice recorders, known as black boxes. The agency expects to prepare a preliminary report within 30 days. The pilots of American Airlines Flight 5342 and the military pilots of the Black Hawk were both used to navigating complex airspace, and the head of the nation’s air traffic controllers’ association said it was too early to speculate on a cause.
Several members of the figure skating community were on the jet returning from a development camp in Wichita, U.S. Figure Skating said. The Skating Club of Boston named six victims, including 1994 world pairs champions Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov.
