![]() |
|
February 17, 2025 |
Crews lift first pieces of wreckage from Potomac River near DC after plane crash ![]() WASHINGTON – Salvage crews on Monday began removing wreckage from the Potomac River after the collision of an American Airlines passenger jet and a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter killed 67 people in the deadliest air disaster in more than two decades.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is leading the removal effort, which will first focus on retrieving the mangled passenger plane before turning to the helicopter and its associated debris. Col. Francis B. Pera of the Army Corps of Engineers said at an afternoon news briefing that additional remains were found during recovery efforts Monday, noting that the team to committed to the "dignified process" of retrieving victims. So far, authorities have identified 55 people killed in the crash. "I do want to emphasize that should any remains be located, we have done and will continue to do an automatic work stoppage until the proper coordination with the appropriate authorities can be conducted," Pera said. Officials said they expect it will take three days to remove the passenger plane from the water near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Arlington, Virginia. On Monday, several cranes could be seen lifting large pieces of debris. Pera confirmed at an afternoon news briefing that crews recovered the first of two engines, the fuselage and had started to retrieve a wing out of the water. Most of the recovered items are expected to sit on a barge overnight before they are transported to a hangar, where they will be assessed as part of a National Transportation Safety Board investigation into the cause of the collision. The focus on Tuesday will shift to recovering the plane's cockpit, Pera said, noting that wind gusts and tidal conditions could affect salvage operations. Large section of the plane's fuselage lifted from the water Recovery crews pulled a massive, jagged piece of the airliner's fuselage from the Potomac River on Monday afternoon, by far the largest section of the plane salvaged since it collided with an Army helicopter and plummeted into the waterway near Reagan National Airport. The large, white metal sheet hung delicately from the crane's yellow clasps as crews moved it onto the barrage. Wires appeared to dangle off its broken edges. Three window holes and a combination of number and letters ?N709PS ? along with a small American flag were visible along the side. Officials have said multiple bodies are believed to still be located within the fuselage of the plane, which is complicating the ongoing salvage effort. The U.S. Coast Guard closed off a large portion of the Potomac River on Monday as multiple agencies coordinated in the removal of the remaining wreckage and bodies following the deadly collision. What's next in the investigation into the plane-helicopter crash? So far, the agency has cited information recovered from the devices in its suggestion that the helicopter was above the 200-foot ceiling for the route it was flying over the Potomac River on Wednesday night. The agency in recent days has shed light on the staffing at Reagan National Airport's control tower and the timeline of the collision. The agency's lead investigator, Brice Banning, said seconds after the air traffic control tower directed the Black Hawk helicopter to pass behind the plane at about 8:47 p.m. ET, there was a "verbal reaction" from the plane crew and flight data showed the plane begin to increase in pitch just before sounds of impact. Five people were in the air traffic control tower at Reagan National Airport at the time of the crash, including an operations supervisor with oversight of the tower and an operations supervisor in training, Inman said. (Source: USA Today) Story Date: February 4, 2025
|