Following the devastating plane crash in Washington DC, new footage shows the moment passengers on another plane bound for the city received the news.
American Airlines flight 5342 was on approach to Runway 33 at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport when it collided with a Sikorsky H-60 Blackhawk helicopter conducting a training exercise.
The flight had 60 passengers on board, along with four crew members.
The wreckage plunged into the Potomac River and an immediate rescue attempt was conducted.
At the time of writing, Sky News reports that 27 bodies have been recovered from the plane wreckage, and one from the helicopter.
It has been reported that officials have switched from a rescue mission to a recovery operation.
“We don’t believe there are any survivors from this accident and we have recovered 27 people from the plane and one from the helicopter,” Washington DC’s fire and emergency medical services chief John Donnelly said in a press conference.
Among those on board were members of the U.S. Figure Skating community.
“These athletes, coaches, and family members were returning home from the National Development Camp held in conjunction with the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Wichita, Kansas,” U.S. Figure Skating said in a statement to CNN.
“We are devastated by this unspeakable tragedy and hold the victims’ families closely in our hearts. We will continue to monitor the situation and will release more information as it becomes available.”
The helicopter carried three military personnel.
A passenger on another flight bound for Washington, DC, filmed the moment he learned of the crash.
“Our plane to DC diverted from Reagan airport due to the plane crash, the passenger jet collided with Blackhawk mid-air,” Tyler Kim wrote on X.
Kim uploaded a video showing fellow passengers watching the news on their seatback screens as footage of the crash played. The breaking news banner on their screens read: “Plane crash in Potomac River.”
Our plane to DC diverted from Reagan airport due to the plane crash, the passenger jet collided with blackhawk mid-air pic.twitter.com/G4K8IkSMUT
— Tyler Kim (@tylertaewook) January 30, 2025
President Donald Trump reacted to the tragedy early Thursday, calling it a “bad situation that looks like it should have been prevented.”
Writing on his Truth Social platform, Trump stated: “The airplane was on a perfect and routine line of approach to the airport. The helicopter was going straight at the airplane for an extended period of time.
“It is a CLEAR NIGHT, the lights on the plane were blazing, why didn’t the helicopter go up or down, or turn. Why didn’t the control tower tell the helicopter what to do instead of asking if they saw the plane?”
Trump concluded: “This is a bad situation that looks like it should have been prevented. NOT GOOD!!!”
Per BBC Ness, American Airlines CEO Robert Isom addressed the crowd gathered at the airport for a press conference at 7:00AM ET.
“This is devastating” Isom said. “Our focus right now is to do everything we can to support everyone involved.”
Transport Secretary Sean Duffy has assured Americans that they have the “safest airspace in the world”.
He further added that the plane and helicopter were in communication with each other, and added: “I would say the helicopter was aware that there was a plane in the area.”
Work is now underway to reunite the bodies of the victims with their loved ones.
Our thoughts continue to be with all of those affected by this tragedy.
