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31 January 2025
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No survivors as US Army Sikorsky Black Hawk helicopter and Bombardier CRJ700 airliner collide mid-air, Virginia, US
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A United States Army Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter collided mid-air with American Airlines Flight 5342 operated by PSA Airlines as American Eagle, a Bombardier CRJ700 airliner, over the Potomac River, about half a mile (800 m) short of runway 33 at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Arlington, Virginia on Wednesday, 29 January 2025,. All 67 people aboard the two aircraft were killed in the crash; 64 on the airliner and three on the helicopter. It was the first major US commercial passenger flight crash since Colgan Air Flight 3407 in 2009 and the deadliest since American Airlines Flight 587 in 2001.
The crash
Flight 5342 was on final approach after departing from Wichita Dwight Eisenhower National Airport in Wichita, Kansas, while the helicopter crew was performing a required annual night flying evaluation out of Davison Army Airfield in Fairfax County, Virginia. Preliminary data shows the collision likely occurred at an altitude of around 325 feet (99m); the Federal Aviation Administration requires helicopters on that route to stay at or below 200 feet (61m). A single air traffic controller was managing both aircraft at the time of the crash, an arrangement deemed "not normal" for that time of day at the airport. Controllers warned the helicopter crew twice about the approaching airliner, with the first alert issued two minutes before the collision.
Around 20h43 EST, flight 5342 was flying a visual approach to runway 1 when it made initial contact with the Reagan National control tower. The controller asked if the crew could switch to runway 33. After a brief discussion, the crew accepted the switch and was cleared to land on runway 33. Around 20h46 the controller called the helicopter crew advising them of a CRJ700, at an altitude of 1200 feet, south of the Woodrow Wilson Memorial Bridge, on approach to runway 33. The helicopter crew acknowledged that they had the jet in sight and requested visual separation, meaning that they would visually acquire and maintain separation from the aircraft on their own, which the controller approved.
Around 20h47 EST, less than 30 seconds before the collision, the air traffic radar issued a conflict alert (CA) and the controller asked the helicopter crew if they had the CRJ in sight and then instructed the helicopter to pass behind Flight 5342. The helicopter crew once again confirmed they had an airplane in sight and requested visual separation from the airliner, which the controller approved again.
The two aircraft collided at a height yet to be precisely established (at its last tracking point, the plane was below 300 feet [91m]), causing the helicopter to explode and crash into the Potomac River. The airliner's airspeed was 128 miles per hour (206km/h). The CRJ700's radio transponder ceased transmitting about 2 400 feet (730m) short of Runway 33.
The collision was captured by a webcam at the John F Kennedy Centre for the Performing Arts and another video showed a brief trail of fire. Other videos showed that the collision may have damaged the rotor blades of the Blackhawk and the left wing of the CRJ700 as the airliner fell in a left-hand spiral into the water. Witnesses reported that the airliner "split in half" upon impact, while the helicopter crashed upside down near the airliner. A pilot in an uninvolved aircraft confirmed seeing the crash to an air traffic controller and reported seeing flares from the opposite side of the Potomac as his flight was on short final.
The airplane was equipped with a traffic collision avoidance system (TCAS). However, TCAS generally inhibits its resolution advisories when the airplane is fewer than 1 000 feet (300m) above ground level. This precaution is taken to avoid guiding an aircraft into potential collisions with terrain or other aircraft in congested terminal airspace and to reduce pilot cognitive load during critical phases of flight.
Senator Ted Cruz said a key safety system was turned off aboard the Black Hawk helicopter.
Within three hours of the collision, authorities confirmed fatalities. As of 02h50am the following morning, no survivors had been reported and search and rescue operations were described as "becoming more grim". By afternoon, all 67 people aboard were presumed dead.
EMS response
DC FEMS chief John Donnelly said emergency responders were notified of an aircraft crash at 20h48. The first units arrived at the scene at 20h58, where they discovered the aircraft in the water. Ultimately, emergency personnel from District of Columbia Fire and EMS (DC FEMS), Metropolitan Police Department, Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, United States Coast Guard, Maryland State Police and other assets from local, state and federal agencies, were dispatched to the scene. Several commercial yachts from CityCruise sailed from Washington Sailing Marina to help with search and rescue operations.
Fireboats and divers were deployed to search for victims and survivors. Rescue efforts were hampered by cold temperatures, strong winds, ice and murky water. The water temperature near the crash site was recorded at 2 degrees Celsius. On 30 January 2025, the rescue operation turned into a recovery mission. By 4 February 2025, all bodies had been recovered, including the three soldiers in the helicopter and all of them were identified by 5 February 2025.
After the collision, Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport suspended all takeoffs and landings, diverting flights to nearby airports, including Dulles International Airport, Baltimore/Washington International Airport and Richmond International Airport. The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority extended Silver Line service to help passengers whose flights were diverted to Dulles and dispatched "warming buses" to help relief operations. The airport remained closed until 11h00 am on 30 January 2025.
The fuselage of Flight 5342 was found upside down in three sections in the river and is being recovered. The search for debris extended to the Woodrow Wilson Bridge, 5km south of Reagan National Airport. A crane used to lift debris after the March 2024 collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore was brought to help pick up plane wreckage. The US Navy also sent two barges to recover heavy items.
The victims
Among the passengers were members of the Skating Club of Boston who were returning from a development camp that followed the 2025 US Figure Skating Championships in Wichita. Victims included teenage figure skaters Jinna Han and Spencer Lane, the teens’ mothers and two Russian-born coaches, Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov, who won a 1994 world championship in pairs skating.
The victims also included a group of hunters returning from a guided trip in Kansas, four members of a steamfitters’ local union in suburban Maryland, nine students and parents from Fairfax County, Virginia, schools and two Chinese nationals.
The plane captain was Jonathan Campos, 34, according to multiple media reports.
The Army identified the soldiers on the helicopter as Capt Rebecca M Lobach of Durham, North Carolina; Staff Sgt Ryan Austin O’Hara, 28, of Lilburn, Georgia and Chief Warrant Officer 2 Andrew Loyd Eaves, 39, of Great Mills, Maryland. O’Hara was the crew chief and Eaves and Lobach were pilots.
This was the first mid-air collision in the United States involving a jet airliner since the crash of Aeroméxico Flight 498 On 31 August 1986, the first mid-air collision involving a commercial passenger aircraft in the United States since SkyWest Airlines Flight 1834 in 1987 and the first fatal mid-air collision in the United States since 2023. It was the deadliest US aviation accident and the first fatal one involving American Airlines, since American Airlines Flight 587 on 12 November 2001. It was the first fatal accident involving the CRJ700 series and the deadliest crash involving any Bombardier CRJ aircraft. It was the first crash in the Potomac River since Air Florida Flight 90 on 13 January 1982.
Flight path drawing by MediaGuy768
Sources: Associated Press, Reuters, The New York Post and several other media sources
The crash
Flight 5342 was on final approach after departing from Wichita Dwight Eisenhower National Airport in Wichita, Kansas, while the helicopter crew was performing a required annual night flying evaluation out of Davison Army Airfield in Fairfax County, Virginia. Preliminary data shows the collision likely occurred at an altitude of around 325 feet (99m); the Federal Aviation Administration requires helicopters on that route to stay at or below 200 feet (61m). A single air traffic controller was managing both aircraft at the time of the crash, an arrangement deemed "not normal" for that time of day at the airport. Controllers warned the helicopter crew twice about the approaching airliner, with the first alert issued two minutes before the collision.
Around 20h43 EST, flight 5342 was flying a visual approach to runway 1 when it made initial contact with the Reagan National control tower. The controller asked if the crew could switch to runway 33. After a brief discussion, the crew accepted the switch and was cleared to land on runway 33. Around 20h46 the controller called the helicopter crew advising them of a CRJ700, at an altitude of 1200 feet, south of the Woodrow Wilson Memorial Bridge, on approach to runway 33. The helicopter crew acknowledged that they had the jet in sight and requested visual separation, meaning that they would visually acquire and maintain separation from the aircraft on their own, which the controller approved.
Around 20h47 EST, less than 30 seconds before the collision, the air traffic radar issued a conflict alert (CA) and the controller asked the helicopter crew if they had the CRJ in sight and then instructed the helicopter to pass behind Flight 5342. The helicopter crew once again confirmed they had an airplane in sight and requested visual separation from the airliner, which the controller approved again.
The two aircraft collided at a height yet to be precisely established (at its last tracking point, the plane was below 300 feet [91m]), causing the helicopter to explode and crash into the Potomac River. The airliner's airspeed was 128 miles per hour (206km/h). The CRJ700's radio transponder ceased transmitting about 2 400 feet (730m) short of Runway 33.
The collision was captured by a webcam at the John F Kennedy Centre for the Performing Arts and another video showed a brief trail of fire. Other videos showed that the collision may have damaged the rotor blades of the Blackhawk and the left wing of the CRJ700 as the airliner fell in a left-hand spiral into the water. Witnesses reported that the airliner "split in half" upon impact, while the helicopter crashed upside down near the airliner. A pilot in an uninvolved aircraft confirmed seeing the crash to an air traffic controller and reported seeing flares from the opposite side of the Potomac as his flight was on short final.
The airplane was equipped with a traffic collision avoidance system (TCAS). However, TCAS generally inhibits its resolution advisories when the airplane is fewer than 1 000 feet (300m) above ground level. This precaution is taken to avoid guiding an aircraft into potential collisions with terrain or other aircraft in congested terminal airspace and to reduce pilot cognitive load during critical phases of flight.
Senator Ted Cruz said a key safety system was turned off aboard the Black Hawk helicopter.
Within three hours of the collision, authorities confirmed fatalities. As of 02h50am the following morning, no survivors had been reported and search and rescue operations were described as "becoming more grim". By afternoon, all 67 people aboard were presumed dead.
EMS response
DC FEMS chief John Donnelly said emergency responders were notified of an aircraft crash at 20h48. The first units arrived at the scene at 20h58, where they discovered the aircraft in the water. Ultimately, emergency personnel from District of Columbia Fire and EMS (DC FEMS), Metropolitan Police Department, Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, United States Coast Guard, Maryland State Police and other assets from local, state and federal agencies, were dispatched to the scene. Several commercial yachts from CityCruise sailed from Washington Sailing Marina to help with search and rescue operations.
Fireboats and divers were deployed to search for victims and survivors. Rescue efforts were hampered by cold temperatures, strong winds, ice and murky water. The water temperature near the crash site was recorded at 2 degrees Celsius. On 30 January 2025, the rescue operation turned into a recovery mission. By 4 February 2025, all bodies had been recovered, including the three soldiers in the helicopter and all of them were identified by 5 February 2025.
After the collision, Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport suspended all takeoffs and landings, diverting flights to nearby airports, including Dulles International Airport, Baltimore/Washington International Airport and Richmond International Airport. The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority extended Silver Line service to help passengers whose flights were diverted to Dulles and dispatched "warming buses" to help relief operations. The airport remained closed until 11h00 am on 30 January 2025.
The fuselage of Flight 5342 was found upside down in three sections in the river and is being recovered. The search for debris extended to the Woodrow Wilson Bridge, 5km south of Reagan National Airport. A crane used to lift debris after the March 2024 collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore was brought to help pick up plane wreckage. The US Navy also sent two barges to recover heavy items.
The victims
Among the passengers were members of the Skating Club of Boston who were returning from a development camp that followed the 2025 US Figure Skating Championships in Wichita. Victims included teenage figure skaters Jinna Han and Spencer Lane, the teens’ mothers and two Russian-born coaches, Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov, who won a 1994 world championship in pairs skating.
The victims also included a group of hunters returning from a guided trip in Kansas, four members of a steamfitters’ local union in suburban Maryland, nine students and parents from Fairfax County, Virginia, schools and two Chinese nationals.
The plane captain was Jonathan Campos, 34, according to multiple media reports.
The Army identified the soldiers on the helicopter as Capt Rebecca M Lobach of Durham, North Carolina; Staff Sgt Ryan Austin O’Hara, 28, of Lilburn, Georgia and Chief Warrant Officer 2 Andrew Loyd Eaves, 39, of Great Mills, Maryland. O’Hara was the crew chief and Eaves and Lobach were pilots.
This was the first mid-air collision in the United States involving a jet airliner since the crash of Aeroméxico Flight 498 On 31 August 1986, the first mid-air collision involving a commercial passenger aircraft in the United States since SkyWest Airlines Flight 1834 in 1987 and the first fatal mid-air collision in the United States since 2023. It was the deadliest US aviation accident and the first fatal one involving American Airlines, since American Airlines Flight 587 on 12 November 2001. It was the first fatal accident involving the CRJ700 series and the deadliest crash involving any Bombardier CRJ aircraft. It was the first crash in the Potomac River since Air Florida Flight 90 on 13 January 1982.
Flight path drawing by MediaGuy768
Sources: Associated Press, Reuters, The New York Post and several other media sources
