A military helicopter collided with an American Airlines passenger jet in Washington DC, USA. According to the Federal Aviation Administration, the incident happened near Runway 33 of Reagan Washington National Airport around 9 pm local time on Wednesday.
Airplane-Helicopter Collision in USA
According to reports, the passenger plane was carrying 60 passengers and 4 crew members, and the helicopter was carrying 3 US servicemen. No injuries or casualties have yet been officially reported, but police reported via CBS News that they had already recovered 18 bodies.
The plane crashed into the Potomac River, and rescue operations have already begun. Search for missing persons is underway using boats. According to the FAA, the crash involving American Eagle Flight 5342, which was flying from Wichita, Kansas to Washington, D.C., is believed to have been due to inclement weather.
According to US media reports, the plane split in two, and the helicopter was upside down over water. The helicopter involved in the crash was a US Army Black Hawk, with no senior military personnel on board.
The National Weather Service predicts nighttime temperatures in the region could drop below freezing, which could pose challenges to rescue operations. Temperatures will range from minus 1 to minus 2 degrees Celsius, and parts of the river have frozen over the past week. Authorities at Reagan Washington National Airport said all flights there are temporarily suspended.
Airlines are being diverted to Dallas International Airport, 28 miles away.
Witness Details
According to eyewitnesses, they saw bright lights in the sky. Eyewitness Ari Shulman said he observed a kind of 'spark' in the sky like a 'large firework'. He was driving along the George Washington Parkway next to the airport. "I often see planes landing there, so it didn't seem unusual at first," he said. Everything was normal, the plane was moving forward properly."
But then suddenly he saw that the plane tilted to the right at an angle of about 90 degrees. He said, “I could clearly see the underside of the plane, which is not supposed to be visible in such darkness. I saw a bright yellow light under the plane and sparks from front to back, like fireworks. But hearing no explosions and seeing no fireballs or other signs of an accident, I turned my attention to the road. Then I thought, what am I seeing wrong? Why didn't I see anything after such a big accident?”
Moments later, when he stepped forward, he saw a crowd of emergency responders gathered around him.
Another eyewitness saw star-like white lights in the sky. Hamad Raza, who witnessed the crash, said he was waiting at Reagan Washington National Airport for his wife, who was on an American Airlines flight. "He texted me that he would be landing in 20 minutes," he told a local CBS News affiliate.
He hopes his wife will be rescued from the river. Lawmakers in various US states have called for prayers for the victims of the accident. US President Donald Trump described the crash as a "horrific incident" and thanked emergency services for their "extraordinary speed".
The US Department of Defense, the Pentagon, has confirmed that they are monitoring the entire situation and will provide assistance if needed. New Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said he was monitoring the situation from FAA headquarters.
The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) will jointly investigate the accident. Meanwhile, American Airlines CEO Robert Isom said that everything possible is being done to rescue the passengers who suffered the accident.
0 Comments