Air collision scene PHOTO: AP
PHOTO: AP
Washington’s Fire and EMS Chief John Donnelly said Thursday morning that 28 bodies were recovered from the scene: 27 passengers from the jet and one from the helicopter.
All the 67 persons involved in the mid air collision have been reported dead, says US emergency service officials.
“At this point, we don’t believe there are any survivors from this accident,” Donnelly said, adding that first responders were “switching from a rescue operation to a recovery operation.”
The commercial flight from Wichita, Kansas., was making its approach to Reagan National Airport when the collision occurred shortly before 9 p.m., according to the Federal Aviation Administration. The Black Hawk helicopter — operating out of Fort Belvoir, Va., with a crew of three — was on a training mission, according to the Defense Department.
The American Airlines plane with 60 passengers and four crew members onboard collided with a military helicopter with 3 persons onboard near Washington, D.C., on Wednesday night, plunging into the Potomac River.
