Earlier today, Thursday, American sources announced that dozens were killed after a civilian passenger plane collided with a military helicopter while approaching Reagan Airport in Washington.
The sources reported that there were deaths and bodies were recovered after an American Airlines passenger plane collided with a military helicopter near Reagan Airport in Washington.
American Airlines confirmed that its plane was coming on a domestic flight from Kansas with 60 passengers and four crew members on board at the time of the accident over the Potomac River.
According to American media, the military helicopter was on a training flight when the accident occurred. The Associated Press reported that the collision occurred in a heavily monitored area about five kilometers south of the White House and Congress.
A source in the American police told the CBS network that rescue teams have recovered the bodies of more than 18 people so far from the Potomac River and no survivors have been found.
The Washington Post quoted informed sources as saying that the bodies of a number of passengers were recovered from the river while NBC reported that four passengers were rescued, CNN quoted a security source as saying that the search for survivors had become more difficult.
US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said that search and rescue efforts were still ongoing, adding that investigations into the collision had begun.
CNN noted that dozens of rescuers were participating in diving operations in the Potomac River to search for survivors while the Governor of Maryland said that the police had sent a submarine to the site to participate in the search efforts.
The US Army confirmed that three soldiers were on board the Black Hawk helicopter that collided with the passenger plane, noting that its helicopter had taken off from Fort Belvoir in Virginia.
Following the accident, Reagan Airport was closed and flights were diverted to Baltimore International Airport. The US Federal Aviation Agency said that the airport would remain closed until at least 5 a.m. Friday, Washington time.
