CNN obtained footage that shows new angles of Wednesday night’s catastrophic mid-air collision between an American Airlines airplane and a military helicopter.
“In the videos both aircraft can clearly be seen flying towards each other, then exploding and falling into the river after the fatal explosion,” CNN wrote.
WATCH:
Two new videos obtained by CNN show new angles on Wednesday night’s midair collision above Washington DC.
In the videos both aircraft can clearly be seen flying towards each other, then exploding and falling into the river after the fatal explosion. pic.twitter.com/W89o5387fp
— Breaking Aviation News & Videos (@aviationbrk) January 31, 2025
From the New York Post:
The cellphone footage, obtained by CNN, provides the clearest angle so far of Wednesday’s tragic midair collision in Washington, DC, that killed 67 people in the country’s deadliest aviation disaster in almost a quarter century.
The two clips captured the Black Hawk helicopter’s red tail lights flashing as it quickly flew directly toward the passenger jet approaching the runway at Ronald Reagan National Airport at about 9 p.m.
The collision sparked a huge fireball, with large sections of the plane plunging into the icy Potomac River, where it was later found in three pieces.
ADVERTISEMENTRemnants of the helicopter, which was carrying three soldiers, also spiraled downwards with its flashing lights still visible, the chilling footage shows.
The footage emerged as investigators and crews prepared to push forward on Friday with efforts to recover the bodies of the remaining victims from the water.
Fresh from recovering the black boxes from the American Airlines plane, divers were also aiming to salvage the remnants of both aircraft, officials said.
“How did this happen? Clear skies, good visibility, and the American Airlines plane is extremely visible,” Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) commented.
How did this happen?
Clear skies, good visibility, and the American Airlines plane is extremely visible.
— Marjorie Taylor Greene
(@mtgreenee) January 31, 2025
“The altitude of the US Army Black Hawk helicopter involved in the Potomac collision was nearly 200 feet off, says Greg Feith, a former National Transportation Safety Board investigator,” Breaking Aviation News & Videos wrote.
“Why were the military pilots almost 200 feet off the restricted altitude? The ceiling on those routes is 200 feet. And if they had been at 200 feet, they would have passed underneath the [regional jet] because the [regional jet] was at about 400 feet,” Feith told media Thursday night, according to the aviation news page.
The altitude of the US Army Black Hawk helicopter involved in the Potomac collision was nearly 200 feet off, says Greg Feith, a former National Transportation Safety Board investigator.
“Why were the military pilots almost 200 feet off the restricted altitude? The ceiling on…
— Breaking Aviation News & Videos (@aviationbrk) January 31, 2025
Per NBC News:
Clips 12- and 17-seconds long, first aired on CNN and since verified by NBC News, appeared to show American Airlines Flight 5342 on its descent to DCA before a the U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter came into camera range from the left.
ADVERTISEMENTThe helicopter appears to strike the underside of the plane, touching off a massive fireball and sending both crafts into the Potomac River below.
The two clips were not released by airport officials and they appear to have been filmed by a cell phone.
It’s believed all 60 passengers and four crew members aboard American Eagle Flight 5342 and three Army personnel on the Black Hawk helicopter were all killed.
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