Potomac Crash
Live Blog EndedJan 31, 2025

Live updates: 28 bodies recovered after plane, helicopter crash left no survivors

A large search-and-rescue effort has turned into a recovery mission for 67 people presumed dead after an American Airlines regional jet and an Army helicopter collided and crashed into the Potomac River

Part of the wreckage is seen as rescue crews search the waters of the Potomac River after a passenger plane on approach to Reagan National Airport crashed into the river after colliding with a US Army helicopter, near Washington, DC, on January 30, 2025. 
Andrew Caballero-Reynolds | Afp | Getty Images

Part of the wreckage is seen as rescue crews search the waters of the Potomac River after a passenger plane on approach to Reagan National Airport crashed into the river after colliding with a US Army helicopter, near Washington, DC, on January 30, 2025. 

What to Know

  • A regional jet with 60 passengers and four crew members and an Army helicopter with three crewmembers aboard collided midair about 9 p.m. ET Wednesday.
  • PSA Airlines was operating the jet as American Airlines Flight 5342. It departed from Wichita, Kansas, and was approaching Reagan Washington National Airport in Northern Virginia before the crash.
  • More than 300 first responders from around the Washington, D.C., region took part in the search-and-rescue mission, which became a recovery mission on Thursday morning.
  • As of Thursday morning, 28 bodies had been recovered from the Potomac River. D.C. Fire and EMS Chief John A. Donnelly said he did not expect to find survivors.
  • The airport reopened at 11 a.m. ET Thursday.

Recovery operations are underway after an American Airlines flight and an Army helicopter collided and crashed into the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport on Wednesday night. Follow live updates below.

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