Officials to give an update on the investigation into the deadly air collision
WASHINGTON (WMBD) — Officials briefed the media Friday afternoon on recovery efforts, saying 41 bodies have been removed from the Potomac River, two days after a mid-air collision between a U.S. Army helicopter and American Airlines flight.
Of those, positive identification has been made on 28 people. Next of kind notifications have been made to 18 families, said Washington DC Fire and EMS Chief John Donnelly, Jr.
Recovery efforts will continue but Donnelly said the airliner's fuselage would have to be removed from the river before more bodies could be recovered. A salvage company, he said, was on its way to the site as ere more assets from the U.S. Coast Guard.
The comments come less than two days after PSA Airlines Bombardier CRJ700 airplane and a Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter collided just as the airliner was to land at Ronald Reagan National Airport.
Sixty-four people — 60 passengers and four crew members — were aboard the commercial jet while three soldiers were on board the helicopter.
Since the crash, airspace for helicopters around the airport has been restricted and Terry Liercke, vice president and manager at Reagan National Airport, said two of the airport's three runaways are closed as they would send planes over the crash site.
He told reporters he expected them to be closed for at least a week, maybe more. He urged people who had flights to contact the airline for updates.
Donnelly said rescue workers are used to working in the elements and expected all people who died in the crash to be recovered at some point.
This story will be updated.
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WASHINGTON (WMBD) — Officials are to soon hold a news conference with the latest update on the plane crash from earlier this week that killed 67 people.
Also expected to be at the press briefing will be Washington DC Fire and EMS Chief John Donnelly, Sr. as is the vice manager of Ronald Reagan National Airport.
WMBD will carry the news conference live and update this story when it is completed.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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