A devastating mid-air collision over the Potomac River on Wednesday night has left at least 28 people dead, with no survivors expected.
An American Airlines regional jet carrying 60 passengers and four crew members collided with a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter while approaching Ronald Reagan National Airport, marking one of the deadliest aviation disasters in recent U.S. history.
The routine flight, American Airlines Flight 5342, had departed Wichita, Kansas, and was moments from landing when the unthinkable happened. Air traffic controllers had instructed the incoming jet to land on Runway 33 and cleared the Army helicopter, conducting a training flight, to pass behind it.
Instead, the two aircraft collided at roughly 400 feet above the river, sending both spiraling into the icy waters below.
Rescue teams worked through the night, but hopes of finding survivors quickly faded. “We are transitioning from rescue to recovery,” said John Donnelly, Washington, D.C.’s fire chief. “It’s an unbearable loss.”
Among the passengers were U.S. and Russian figure skaters returning from a training camp. The U.S. Figure Skating Association confirmed the loss of former world champions Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov, adding to the heartbreak of the tragedy.
Investigators are now scrambling to determine what went wrong. With Reagan National sitting in one of the most controlled airspaces in the world, aviation experts are questioning how the two aircraft ended up on a collision course.
“We don’t know why the military aircraft entered the path of our plane,” American Airlines CEO Robert Isom stated, vowing full cooperation with investigators.
The crash is already drawing comparisons to the 1982 Air Florida disaster, in which a plane crashed into the Potomac under icy conditions.
However, with clear weather on Wednesday night, experts believe the cause lies elsewhere—possibly miscommunication or a tragic miscalculation.
The FAA, NTSB, and the U.S. Army have launched a multi-agency probe into the incident, with Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy pledging a full investigation.
As the search for wreckage and answers continues, the nation mourns another aviation tragedy, leaving families shattered and a country searching for clarity in the face of immense loss.