All 64 people aboard an American Airlines passenger jet and the three soldiers on a military helicopter that collided over Washington, DC, are believed to have died, officials confirmed.
“At this point, we don’t believe there are any survivors from this tragedy,” said Washington’s Fire Chief, John Donnelly, during a press briefing on Thursday morning.
The bodies of 27 passengers from the plane and one from the helicopter have already been recovered from the Potomac River.
“We are now transitioning from a rescue operation to a recovery operation,” he added.
American Airlines Flight 5342, which was en route from Wichita, Kansas to Washington’s Reagan National Airport, collided with the military helicopter while approaching the runway around 9 p.m. on Wednesday (0200 GMT Thursday). The collision caused both aircraft to crash into the Potomac River.
