A Black Hawk helicopter from the US Army, which collided with an American Airlines flight on January 29 near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, was flying above the designated altitude limit, according to the US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB ).
Restore crews have recovered the body of all 67 patients, officials confirmed. Several government organizations involved in the restoration efforts have issued statements from all but one of the body identified.
The search for remains was concluded, according to the organizations, as a” important action” in bringing justice to the families of the victims of the accident.
The statement read,” Our hearts are with the victims ‘ families as they navigate this tragic loss.” We extend our deepest sympathies to those who are going through this tough time.
The plane was recorded at 300 feet, whereas the region’s greatest acceptable level is 200 feet, according to NTSB information. The plane could have been flying anywhere from 251 foot to 349 feet, according to the air traffic control radar information, which were rounded to the nearest 100 ft.
The American Airlines Bombardier CRJ700 flight, which was cleared for takeoff at Reagan National Airport at the time of the incident, was stricken by a tragic incident that claimed the lives of 67 people, including all 60 people and 7 team people. The aircraft made an effort to move up in order to avoid the collapse events before impact, according to the jet’s black box data, which revealed that the aircraft was flying at 325 feet.
A military education mission aimed at re-qualifying aircraft for upcoming missions in the area included the plane. The conditions of the crash raise concerns about why the Black Hawk was operating in a restricted airspace usually reserved for commercial aircraft.
The NTSB has stated in an Associated Press ( AP ) article that investigators are still awaiting confirmation of the exact altitude of the submerged helicopter.
The aircraft from both plane is being recovered from the Potomac River, with authorities reporting that they have already retrieved important parts of the aircraft, including the right wing, core aircraft, part of the left wing, neck cone, and rudder, as per Fox News. Before shifting their focus to retrieving the Black Hawk helicopter, crews continue to work to retrieve the remaining wreckage of the passenger plane from the frigid waters.
A joint search and recovery operation, led by agencies like the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers, has been working under challenging conditions to recover all necessary wreckage.
The NTSB is still looking into the incident, and they anticipate a preliminary report within the next 30 days, despite full investigations typically taking longer.
The crash is the deadliest in the US in over two decades, surpassing the 2001 crash of American Airlines Flight 587 in New York, which killed 265 people. The victims included 60 passengers on the American Airlines flight, with some being figure skaters returning from the 2025 U. S. Figure Skating Championships.
Three soldiers were all killed in the Black Hawk helicopter’s collision, including three of them.
