Ronald Reagan Washington Nationwide Airport Nonetheless Closed After Lethal Crash

Ronald Reagan Washington Nationwide Airport (DCA) remained shut down on Thursday morning after an American Airways regional jet fatally collided mid-air with a navy helicopter simply exterior the airport on Wednesday night time. As of early Thursday morning, greater than 500 flights had been canceled out and in of DCA, in line with flight tracker FlightAware.

All flights have been halted on the Washington, D.C.-area airport and are not anticipated to renew till no less than 11 a.m. on Thursday, in line with the airport. The airport’s terminals stay open.

“All airport roads and terminals are open,” the airport wrote in a publish on X, previously often known as Twitter. “Some flights have been delayed or cancelled, so passengers are inspired to verify with their airline for particular flight info.”

The incident occurred at about 9 p.m. ET on Wednesday when American Eagle Flight 5342 collided midair whereas making an attempt to land on the airport with a Sikorsky H-60 helicopter, in line with the Federal Aviation Authority (FAA). The flight was operated on a Bombardier CRJ700 plane by regional provider PSA Airways, wholly owned by American, and was headed from Wichita, Kansas, to Washington, D.C.

There have been 60 passengers and 4 crew members on board the American Airways plane, in line with a press release from the provider. The Related Press reviews {that a} navy helicopter, which additionally had a number of passengers on board, was on a coaching flight on the time.

As of Thursday morning, PSA Airways was compelled to cancel greater than 280 flights and American Airways was compelled to cancel an extra 165 flights, in line with FlightAware.

“First, and most significantly, I’d like to specific our deep sorrow about these occasions,” Robert Isom, CEO of American Airways, mentioned in a video handle posted to the airline’s web site. “It is a troublesome day for all of us at American Airways and our efforts now are centered totally on the wants of our passengers, crew members, companions, first responders, together with their households and family members.”

The Nationwide Transportation Security Board (NTSB) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) have launched an investigation into the crash, in line with the FAA. Isom mentioned the airline was “cooperating totally” with the investigation and “we need to be taught every little thing we are able to about at the moment’s occasions.”

The our bodies of no less than 28 individuals have been recovered from the frigid Potomac River, and whereas officers are nonetheless looking for casualties, they don’t anticipate finding any survivors, the AP reported. If true, that might make this the deadliest U.S. air crash in practically 24 years.