Washington DC Plane Crash: Authorities Recover 41 Bodies After Mid-air Collision

Authorities have recovered 41 bodies after an airplane crash in Washington DC.

Sixty-seven individuals were killed when an American Airlines jet and a military helicopter collided mid-air on Wednesday night. So far, 28 bodies have been determined.

Both into the Potomac River after the crash. Some 300 workers were sent out to the scene, job however the rescue soon became a recovery mission as officials said there were no survivors.

Washington crash: Follow the most current updates

Federal private investigators have actually recuperated the black boxes from the guest jet, while authorities were still browsing for similar devices in the helicopter.

Meanwhile, amid questions over how well the airport’s control tower was staffed on the night of the crash, job it’s been validated that an air traffic control service manager had actually let a controller leave their shift early.

The detail, initially reported by the New york city Times, job has actually been confirmed to Sky News’ US partner NBC News by a source familiar with the investigation.

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It suggests a single controller was handling both airplane and helicopter traffic in the area when the 2 aircraft clashed.

It is allowed – however not optimum – for one controller to do both jobs, NBC News reported.

The American Airlines jet was carrying 60 guests and four crew when it crashed with the Black Hawk helicopter, carrying 3 soldiers, shortly before 9pm local time on Wednesday.

Flight 5342 was preparing to land on runway 33 at the Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport when it clashed with the helicopter in among the most securely managed airspaces in the world.

‘Em ergency lorries sped past me’

A male whose partner was on the flight has actually recalled how he saw emergency situation services “speeding past” as he was waiting at the airport to pick her up.

Hamaad Raza told NBC News his partner of two years, Asra, had “texted me [and] said, ‘We’re landing in 20 minutes'”.

” I was waiting and I started seeing a lot of EMS cars speeding past me … method a lot of, [more] than typical and my texts weren’t going through.”

Trump makes unproven diversity drive claim

Donald Trump has linked a diversity drive at the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) under previous federal governments to the crash.

It has given that been said there is no evidence to support the US president’s claim.

Speaking at the White House on Thursday, Mr Trump recommended the diversity efforts had made flight less safe.

At a White House press briefing on Friday, press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Mr Trump had signed a memorandum directing an immediate evaluation of FAA employing decisions made during the previous administration.

While Mr Trump’s claim appears to have been unmasked, there are questions over staffing at Reagan Washington National Airport.

NBC News reported staffing in the air traffic control tower was “not normal”, according to an initial FAA report.

The tower typically has a controller who focuses particularly on helicopter traffic – however at the time of the crash, a source stated, one controller was supervising both airplane and job helicopter activity.

The FAA, which manages air traffic control service as well as accreditation of personnel and aircraft, is without an irreversible administrator. Its former employer Michael Whitaker stepped down on 20 January – the day of Mr Trump’s inauguration.

Follow Trump 100 on your podcast app Mr Trump has actually selected an acting administrator, Chris Rocheleau, in the wake of the crash.

Mr Whitaker had actually encountered Mr Trump’s confidante Elon Musk over the SpaceX rocket launches during his period at the FAA.

Since beginning as head of the administration in October 2023, he was likewise forced to react to Boeing’s safety and quality problems, and worked to hire more air traffic controllers due to a scarcity of staff.

Find out more:.
Washington DC airplane crash: What we understand job up until now.
Air traffic control service heard diverting aircrafts moments after accident

At his briefing, Mr Trump blamed former president Joe Biden for decreasing requirements for air traffic controllers.

” We have to have our smartest individuals,” he said. “They need to be naturally talented geniuses.”

Mr Trump included: “The FAA is actively hiring workers who suffer extreme intellectual specials needs, psychiatric issues, and other psychological and physical conditions under a variety and inclusion hiring initiative defined on the firm’s website.”

The American Association of People with Disabilities reacted to these claims, saying in a declaration on X: “FAA workers with specials needs did not cause [the] tragic airplane crash.

” The examination into the crash is still continuous. It is incredibly improper for the president to utilize this catastrophe to push an anti-diversity hiring program. Doing so makes all Americans less safe.”

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Mr Trump stated after being sworn in recently, he signed an executive order which “brought back the greatest standards of air traffic controllers”.

At a later instruction, he was asked if gender or race played a role. He answered: “It may have, I do not know.