Officials say they don't believe there are any survivors after an American Airlines passenger jet carrying 64 people collided with a military helicopter before plunging into the freezing Potomac River late Wednesday night.
The mid-air collision happened at the Ronald Reagan National Airport in Virginia, near Washington.
D.C. Fire and EMS Chief John Donnelly said he's confident they will recover all the bodies of those killed in the crash, with 28 bodies pulled out of the river so far.
Among the deaths include members of the U.S. figure skating community, including the married Russian-born ice skating coaches and former world champions Yevgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov.
The Skating Club of Boston said skater Jinna Han and her mother, Jin Han, as well as skater Spencer Lane and his mother, Christine Lane were also killed in the crash.
“In this moment of profound grief, we stand in solidarity with our colleagues at U.S. Figure Skating and offer our unwavering support as they navigate this immeasurable loss,” Skate Canada said in a statement.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has opened an investigation into the collision, beginning with attempting to recover the wreckage of the jet.
Robert Isom, American Airlines CEO, said he was unsure as to why the helicopter came into contact with the jet.
“At this time, we don’t know why the military aircraft came into the path of the PSA aircraft,” Isom said Thursday morning.
Secretary of transportation Sean Duffy said both flights were on a standard flight pattern.
He also promised reforms to assure it wouldn’t happen again.
“It should not have happened,” Duffy said. “When Americans take off in airplanes, they should expect to land at their destination – that didn’t happen yesterday. That’s not acceptable, and so we will not accept excuses.”
The airport has opened again as of 11:00 a.m. this morning, as Jack Potter, CEO of the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, says it’s safe to do so.
"It's safe," Potter said. "We’ve worked with all of the federal agencies, FAA, and it’s been determined we can open that airport safely. The recovery effort that’s on our property is on the waterfront.”
