New vision has been released purporting to show the midair collision between an American Airlines jet and a U.S. Army Blackhawk helicopter over Washington on Wednesday night from a new angle.
As Breitbart News reported, American Airlines flight 5342, with 60 passengers and four crew, was in the final minutes of its journey from Wichita, Kansas — where some figure skaters onboard had taken part in a competition and training camp.
Meanwhile, a Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter with three military personnel was flying at the same altitude over the Potomac River during what was described as a routine nighttime training flight.
The two collided with deadly results. Watch below as the new vision unfolds:
There is absolutely NO WAY the Black Hawk didn’t see the American Airlines plane. They flew right into it. pic.twitter.com/Fco4yVzSXy
— Ian Miles Cheong (@stillgray) January 31, 2025
Air traffic audio recorded in the immediate aftermath of the crash has been released, Sky News reports.
A controller says: “Um, I just saw a fireball and then it was just gone. I haven’t seen anything since they hit the river. But it was a CRJ [the type of plane that crashed] and a helicopter that hit, I would say a half-mile off the approach.”
Within minutes, the controllers began redirecting other planes in the region.
U.S. military helicopters regularly fly a route over the Potomac river near the busy Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, known as Route 4.
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For safety reasons, the altitude on those helicopter flights is capped at 200 feet.
A “highly complex” search and rescue operation has since found no survivors from the tragedy.
