On Wednesday evening, an American Airlines commercial flight carrying 60 passengers took off from Wichita, Kan., but never reached its destination. In a devastating mid-air collision near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Virginia, the jet struck a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter carrying three soldiers. Both aircraft plummeted into the Potomac River, marking the deadliest U.S. air disaster since November 2001.
The American Airlines Bombardier CRJ-701 was en route to Washington, D.C., when it collided with the military UH-60 helicopter, which had just taken off for a training exercise from Fort Belvoir, Va. Among the 64 people aboard the jet were more than a dozen figure skaters, along with four crew members. Tragically, authorities have confirmed no survivors.
Audio recordings from LiveATC.net reveal the final moments of communication between air traffic control and the helicopter crew. Controllers instructed the helicopter to pass behind the CRJ, but there was no reply. Moments later, the plane’s radio transponder stopped transmitting just short of the runway.
Emergency responders arrived at the crash site shortly before 9 p.m., with the D.C. Fire and EMS chief confirming the loss of all onboard. Search and recovery efforts are ongoing, with authorities working to retrieve victims from the wreckage in the Potomac River.
The Federal Aviation Administration and the Department of Defense have launched investigations into the cause of the collision, as officials seek answers in this catastrophic accident.
Source: Swifteradio.com
