Emergency intervention units access the plane wreck in the Potomac river near Ronald Reagan Washington Airport early Thursday in Arlington, Virginia, after a flight from American Airlines from Kansas collided with a helicopter while approaching the airport.
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Washington, DC – A regional jet carrying 64 people collided in the air with a Black Hawk helicopter while the plane approached a track at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport on Wednesday evening, according to federal officials aviation.
The accident occurred while the jet, operated by the regional carrier PSA Airlines on behalf of American Airlines, was trying to land just before 9 p.m.
So far, there has been no official word on deaths. But the incident could be the most important disaster in American airspace for at least 15 years.
An American Airlines flight from Wichita, Kansas, collided with a helicopter while approaching Ronald Reagan National Airport.
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On Wednesday evening, emergency vehicles at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. The American Capitol is seen through the Potomac river in Washington, DC
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Tyrone Turner / Wamu / NPR
American Airlines said there were 60 passengers and four crew members on board the jet, a CRJ-700 bomber. The Pentagon told NPR that the Army Black Hawk helicopter wore three soldiers and was based in very Belvoir, Virginia.
“I would like to express our deep sadness about these events,” said the CEO of the airline, Robert Isom, in a video message. “It is a difficult day for all of us in American Airlines. And our efforts are now entirely focused on the needs of our passengers, crew members, partners, first stakeholders, as well as their families and their loved ones.”
Emergency units respond after a passenger plane collided with a helicopter in the Potomac river near Ronald Reagan Washington airport on January 30, 2025 in Arlington, Virginia.
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A helicopter flies over the Potomac river south of Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, seen from Hains Point in Washington, DC
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Mark Schiefelbein / AP
The jet, operating as American Eagle Flight 5342, had left Wichita, Kan., And tried to land on track 33 at Reagan Airport (DCA).
A webcam in the center of John F. Kennedy nearby for the performing arts showed a small plane, probably the helicopter, colliding with the jet of passenger at low altitude, followed by a light explosion.
In a few minutes, the emergency crews rushed to the scene, while helicopters and firefighters began to scan the icy Potomac river near the airport for the survivors. About the first 300 stakeholders were involved in the research and rescue effort, said DC Fire and EMS Chief John Donelly.
“The conditions are extremely difficult for the stakeholders,” said Donelly during a press briefing at the airport early Thursday morning.
“The water in which we operate is about 8 feet deep. There is wind. There are pieces of ice there,” said Donelly. “So, it’s just dangerous and difficult to work. And because there are not many lights, you are looking for each square thumb of space to see if you can find someone. Divers do the same thing in water.
The transport secretary, Sean Duffy, on the left, and the mayor of DC Muriel Bowser, at the center, listen to Senator (R-KS) Jerry Moran speaks during a press conference at Reagan National Airport after A plane crashed in the Potomac river outside Washington, DC, DC, January 30, 2025. A regional kansas jet crashed in the Washington Potomac river after having collided in the air With a military helicopter near Reagan National Airport, officials said on January 29, causing a major emergency response and anchoring all flights.
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Ting Shen / AFP via getty images
The two American Kansas senators also spoke during the airport briefing.
“This is a time when women will have to join weapons and help each other,” said senator Roger Marshall. “We have already crossed things like this, through tornadoes and floods and things, but it’s really difficult when you probably lose more than 60 kansans simultaneously.”
The other Republican state senator Jerry Moran said that non -stop American flights from Wichita at Reagan airport had started about a year ago.
“I know this flight. I have it myself several times. I put pressure on American Airlines to start having a direct and non-stop flight service to DCA,” said Moran. “And it is certainly true that in Kansas and Wichita, in particular, we will know the people who are on this flight, know the members of their family, know someone.”
The airspace in and around DCA is complicated due to the difficult approaches of the airport as well as the flight restrictions over government buildings. It is also a particularly busy airspace, with an influx of police and military helicopters operating in the region.
People have gathered to look at research efforts on the Potomac river.
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Flight 5342 of American Airlines has collided outdoors with a military helicopter near Ronald Reagan National Airport outside Washington, DC Emergency Crews works on the shore of the Potomac river near the joint base Anacostia-Bolling.
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Tyrone Turner / Wamu / NPR
Wichita officials have activated a “family support team” at Wichita Dwight D. Eisenhower National Airport. Some family members of those aboard flight 5342 were there to meet a chaplain on Wednesday evening.
In a white house statement, President Trump said: “I was fully informed of the terrible accident that has just occurred at Reagan National Airport. May God bless their soul. Thank you for the incredible work by our First speakers.
Officials at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport interrupted all takeoff and landing after Wednesday evening collision.
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Julio Cortez / AP
In the United States, the last major commercial plane accident took place in 2009, when a Colgan Air flight crashed near Buffalo, killing a total of 50 people (49 passengers and crew, and a person inside a house).
The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board said they would investigate.
This is a news and will be updated.
Brian Mann and Jennifer Ludden of NPR contributed to this report.
