The horrific American Airlines crash over Washington, DC, has been further illuminated by terrifying air traffic control audio.<\/p>\n
Just before 9:00 p.m. (January 29), the American Airlines-owned PSA Airlines plane, which was carrying 60 passengers and four crew members, collided with a BlackHawk helicopter that was carrying three military personnel.<\/p>\n
Law enforcement agencies from all over the region flew over the scene to search for survivors after the accident occurred as Flight 5342 was getting ready to land at Ronald Reagan National Airport, which has suspended all takeoffs and landings.<\/p>\n
Eighteen bodies have been found so far after both cars crashed into the Potomac River.<\/p>\n
Since then, American Airlines has released the following statement: \u201cAmerican Eagle Flight 5342 was involved in an accident at DCA while it was traveling from Wichita, Kansas (ICT) to Washington, D.C. (DCA).\u201d With a CRJ-700, PSA Airlines flew the flight.<\/p>\n
\u201cOn board the aircraft were four crew members and sixty passengers.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe crew and passengers on board the aircraft are our top priority. We are communicating with law enforcement and supporting emergency response activities.<\/p>\n
If you think you might have loved ones on Flight 5342, give American Airlines a call at 800-679-8215, toll-free. For more phone numbers, callers from outside the United States can visit news.aa.com. Family members in the U.S. Virgin Islands, Canada, or Puerto Rico can give 800-679-8215 a call directly.<\/p>\n
A dispatcher can be heard recounting the events following the downing of both aircraft in audio that CBS News was able to obtain.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe accident happened in the river,\u201d they claim. \u201cBoth the helicopter and the plane crashed in the river.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jimmy Mazeo, an eyewitness, told WUSA9 that he was eating dinner in a nearby park when he noticed \u201cwhite flares\u201d in the sky. He did not realize how serious the situation was at the time.<\/p>\n
\u201cUntil we noticed the police cars and boats, as well as the fire trucks beginning to head out to the tarmac, we didn\u2019t really give it much thought. \u201cIt was crazy,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m truly amazed. Of course, what happened tonight is awful, but I think it\u2019s crazy that we had to witness it. I\u2019m sending up prayers for everyone concerned.<\/p>\n
The \u2018terrible accident\u2019 has been briefed to President Donald Trump. In a statement, he said, \u201cMay God bless their souls.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThank you for the incredible work being done by our first responders.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is a bad situation that looks like it should have been prevented,\u201d he added on his TruthSocial account. \u201cNOT GOOD!\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The horrific American Airlines crash over Washington, DC, has been further illuminated by terrifying air traffic control audio. Just before 9:00 p.m. (January 29), the American Airlines-owned… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":30091,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-30090","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n