Haunting moment DC disaster rescue teams comb for bodies as planes continue to fly over crash site where 67 died
Following Wednesday’s horrific crash between an Army helicopter and a commercial airliner, heartbreaking video shows rescue workers looking for bodies while planes continue to fly overhead.
Brave personnel are shown urgently searching the Potomac River in Washington, DC, for remains following the tragedy that left no survivors, according to video obtained exclusively by The U.S. Sun.
Before nine o’clock on Wednesday night, a Black Hawk flying in the center of its descending path was struck by an American Airlines aircraft.
Since then, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has revealed that the flame explosion was caused by a “elevation issue” with the training mission of the US Army-operated aircraft.
This is the deadliest US aviation disaster since November 2001, when an American Airlines aircraft crashed into a neighborhood in New York City, killing 260 people.
Passengers had little hope of surviving in the freezing cold and ink-black seas of Washington, DC, as first responders soon recognized the rescue mission as a recovery effort.
read more on the plane crash
Errors behind DC crash emerge from wrong flight path to ‘helicopter alley’
Capt Sully reveals crucial factor in DC jet crash & says ‘everything is harder’
The hardworking crews are still looking for remains as they maneuver the broken plane parts that landed upside down into the murky water, days after 40 dead were removed from the river.
Exclusive video of the gruesome scene, in which divers are still swimming through the death-strewn seas, was obtained by the U.S. Sun.
Throughout the lengthy search on Friday, patrol boats risked pouring weather.
At the neighboring Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, where the fateful plane was bound, the U.S. Sun also spoke with nervous passengers.
As they waited for flights, several of them talked about the general terror that permeated the lobby.
Just one hour after the airport reopened on Thursday morning, several travelers had to catch an aircraft, and they were all apprehensive before making their way to TSA.
“I’m flying out, it’s pretty tragic,” airline employee Abhi, 25, told The U.S. Sun.
“I do feel a little more conscious than I usually do when I’m traveling because I do it frequently.
“So, I do feel a little more conscious and afraid now, but you have to keep moving and move on, you know.
After his sister’s flight was redirected from Arkansas to New York due to the crash, another worried traveler told of spending the entire night texting her.
“She is rather worried. Carlos Estrada remarked, “She’s been texting me the entire time.”
“I find it uncomfortable. Everybody here is in some form of pain.
I watched as DC rescue teams fought through torrential rain to find remains in icy waters
From Washington, DC, Senior Reporter Israel Salas-Rodriguezin:
Just a few feet behind me, along the Potomac River in the nation’s capital, a recovery effort is still in progress.
Searches for victims have continued as divers comb the seas.
The unimaginable event happened late Wednesday night when a Black Hawk army chopper struck an American Airlines flight carrying 64 passengers and crew members from Wichita, Kansas, as the commercial airplane was descending into Reagan National Airport.
The horrifying incident that was captured on camera rocked the nation.
Video showed the mid-air crash that illuminated the sky over Washington, DC, as the remains of both planes fell into the freezing Potomac River, killing everyone involved.
First responders have been removing debris and remains from the aircrafts from the icy waters around the clock.
An hour after Reagan National Airport reopened at 11 a.m. on Thursday, the U.S. Sun was at the airport.
As they waited to board their flight, a number of passengers who were carrying their bags told The U.S. Sun that the incident made them anxious.
One worried guy explained that ever since her AA from Arkansas was diverted to New York due to the collision, he and his sister have been messaging constantly throughout the night.
The reason of the collision that killed all 67 persons on board the AA flight and Army chopper is being investigated by the National Transportation Safety Board.
At least 41 bodies have been found thus far.
Famous ice skaters and aspiring Olympians, at least 14 of the passengers on the AA flight were on their way home after a national Figure Ice Skating competition in Wichita.
The sportsmen belonged to different ice rinks in Boston and the DMV area.
On Thursday night, the U.S. Sun spoke to a number of mourners outside Ashburn Ice Center, many of whom were still clearly disturbed by the incident.
Former Ashburn ice hockey coach Wellesley Shomo spent three years as a coach at the institution and twenty years as a player.
A heartbroken Wellesley recalled that several of the instructors who perished in the collision were decent individuals who put a lot of effort into their work.
Just minutes before Ashburn Ice Center was scheduled to close for the evening on Thursday, a 15-year-old girl and her mother showed up with flowers.
This is our rink, the tearful teenager told The U.S. Sun, adding that some of her pals perished in the collision. Since I was three, I have been skating here. All I’m doing is trying not to cry.
Although he promised to launch a prompt inquiry, President Trump stated that he and his team have strong feelings and ideas about what transpired.
SEARCH FOR ANSWERS
President Donald Trump is blaming the US Army for the disaster and has started a quest for explanations.
The Black Hawk was flying through “helicopter alley,” so named because it was a pre-approved path for Army missions, according to now-unsettling flight records.
The air traffic controller at Reagan Airport assured the helicopter pilot that it was safe to utilize the area as long as they stayed below 200 feet in the air.
But the Black Hawk continued to fly at 300 feet, directly into the plane’s path as it descended.
‘Scared’ travelers return to Ronald Reagan airport
By Israel Salas-Rodriguezin, Senior Reporter, Washington, DC:
Just before 9 p.m. on Wednesday, a Black Hawk helicopter struck an American Airlines plane that was getting ready to land, killing 67 passengers. However, Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport is now operational again.
Following the crash, DCA was closed for 14 hours until reopening on Thursday at 11 a.m.
“I’m flying out, it’s pretty tragic,” a 25-year-old passenger named Abhi told The U.S. Sun at the airport.
“I do feel a little more conscious than I usually do when I’m traveling because I do it frequently.
“So, I do feel a little more conscious and afraid now, but you have to keep moving and move on, you know.
Carlos Estrada, a resident of Maryland, told The U.S. Sun that he was awaiting the arrival of his sister’s flight from Arkansas, which had been redirected to New York.
“She s very concerned, she s been texting me the whole time,” Estrada stated.
“I find it uncomfortable. Everybody here is in some kind of pain.
In a cutting Truth Social post, Trump voiced his shock at how there could have been such a deadly oversight by the pilots.
The president’s letter stated, “The Black Hawk helicopter was flying too high, by a lot,”
It was close to the 200-foot mark. That shouldn’t be too difficult to comprehend, is it?
As of Friday, the FAA has banned helicopters from flying in areas around the airport.
VICTIMS NAMED
Children, world-class athletes, and a group of hunting buddies were all on the plane that came crashing into a deadly spiral.
A large portion of the flight from Wichita, Kansas, was coming from the US National Championships for ice skating.
Teen skaters Jinna Han and Spencer Lane boarded the plane with their mothers and their coaches – Russian couple Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov.
Little sisters Alydia and Everly Livingston, who were 11 and 14 years old, were also on the doomed flight.
Another victim, 30-year-old Kiah Duggins, was a former Miss Kansas contestant and Harvard Law graduate who previously worked as an intern for Michelle Obama.
Two of the three soldiers onboard the Black Hawk have been named as Chief Warrant Officer 2 Andrew Eaves and Crew Chief Ryan O’Hara, 28.
The third soldier’s identity wasn’t released at the request of their family.
The first officer of the American Airlines flight was named as Sam Lilley, a 28 year old who was newly engaged.
According to his heartbroken dad, he was in the “prime of his life.”
Read More on The US Sun
Passenger jet s black box found amid fears of air traffic control ‘mistake’
Karoline Leavitt’s busy life as she returned to work 3 days after giving birth
“I was so proud when Sam became a pilot. Now it hurts so bad I can t even cry myself to sleep,” he wrote on Facebook.
“It is so devastating to lose someone that is loved so much.”
Washington DC plane crash victims
On January 29, 2025, hundreds are thought to have died in a mid-air collision between American Airlines aircraft 5342 and a military chopper. Among the victims are:
- Captain Jonathan Campos, 34
- First Officer Samuel Lilley, 28
- Flight attendant Ian Epstein, 53
- Flight attendant Danasia Brown
- Spencer Lane, 16
- Christine Lane, 49
- Jinna Han, 13
- Jin Han
- Evgenia Shishkova, 52
- Vadim Naumov, 55
- Alexandr Kirsanov
- Angela Yang
- Sean Kay
- Peter Livingston
- Donna Smojice Livingston
- Everly Livingston, 14
- Alydia Livingston, 11
- Inna Volyanskaya
- Brielle Beyer, 12,
- Justyna Magdalena Beyer
- Olivia Eve Ter, 12
- Asra Hussain Raza, 26
- Michael Stovall, 40
- Jesse Pitcher, 30
- Elizabeth Anne Keys, 33
- Wendy Jo Shaffer
- Kiah Duggins
- Casey Crafton
- Lori Schrock, 56
- Robert Schrock, 58
- Vikesh Patel
- Grace Maxwell, 20
- Black Hawk Staff Sgt. Ryan O’Hara, 28
- Black Hawk Chief Warrant Officer 2 Andrew Eaves, 39