CNN has obtained two chilling videos of the DC plane crash that offer the clearest view of how the American Airlines plane and the Army helicopter collided into each other leading to a fireball in the sky before the debris from the fireball fell into the frozen water below. CNN reported that the footage was taken on a cellphone during the tragic midair collision that killed 67 people in the deadliest disaster of the country in almost a quarter century.
The two clips captured the Black Hawk helicopter’s tail lights as the army copter came from the left side. The American Airlines plane can be seen flying towards the Ronald Reagan National Airport when they collided at about 9 pm.
The collision sparked a huge fireball with large sections of the plane plunging into the frozen Potomac River where it was later found in three pieces. The footage shows how the remnants of the helicopter which was carrying three soldiers fell down with its flashing lights still visible.
Investigation so far
As investigators with the National Transportation Safety Board piece together what lead to a deadly midair collision near Reagan National Airport, NTSB member Todd Inman said crews are working to access data from the helicopter.
Two black boxes have been recovered from the plane, and are being analyzed at the NTSB’s lab, according to Inman. As for the helicopter, Inman said the military aircraft is fitted with a recorder of some kind, but it’s not clear if it contains voice recordings, data or both.
Military helicopter was flying too high?
A New York Times report said the Black Hawk helicopter may have been flying outside of its approved flight path. The newspaper said four people briefed on the matter also said the Black Hawk may have been a half-mile off of its designated route. There is a margin of only 350 feet between the designated paths of the helicopter and the commercial jet, meaning any significant deviation could be disastrous, CNN aviation analyst and pilot Miles O’Brien said.
