Newly obtained footage has shown the moment that the American Airlines plane tragically collided with a military helicopter.
American Airlines flight 5342 was coming in to land at Ronald Reagen Washington National Airport when it struck a military-operated Black Hawk helicopter.
The wreckage of both aircraft plunged into the waters of the Potomac River and an immediate search and rescue mission was launched.
Sadly, the following day, officials switched to a recovery operation as the 64 people on the plane and three on the helicopter were assumed to be dead.
New cellphone footage, obtained by CNN, offers a stark visual of Wednesday night’s catastrophic accident in the capital city.
The videos show the Black Hawk helicopter’s red tail lights flashing as it approached the passenger jet, which was on its final approach to Ronald Reagan National Airport around 9:00PM.
The collision triggered a massive fireball, with large portions of the aircraft plunging into the icy Potomac River, where the wreckage was later found in three pieces.
You can watch the footage here:
Debris from the helicopter, which had three soldiers onboard, was also seen spiraling downward, its flashing lights still visible as it fell, according to the chilling footage.
Officials confirmed that divers had successfully recovered the black boxes from the American Airlines jet and were working to salvage wreckage from both aircraft.
One of those on the plane was Spencer Lane, a rising star from the Skating Club of Boston believed to be 16 years old. His mother is also presumed dead.
His heartbroken father spoke to WPRI about losing his son and wife.
“Whether he was in his home club in Boston, [Spencer] was just loved by everyone,” Douglas Lane said. “From adults running the club to smaller skaters, to the people that are competing for a shot at the Olympics, they all adored him.”
In a statement, he described his son as “a force of nature.”
“You simply could not stop him if he decided he wanted to do something,” he wrote.
“There is no better example of this than his remarkable skating journey, which we are heartbroken to see end too soon. He truly loved it, and his ascent from basic Learn to Skate classes to U.S. Figure Skating’s National Development Team in just a few short years was unprecedented.”
As reported by BBC News, President Donald Trump has implied that the hiring process of the Federal Aviation Administration could have led to the tragedy.
He has repeatedly lashed out at “diversity, equity, and inclusion” programs in federal departments.
There is currently no evidence to support his claims.
Our thoughts continue to be with those impacted by this tragedy.
