2025 Potomac River mid-air collision

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2025 Potomac River mid-air collision
EarthCam footage of the collision and crash, taken from the Kennedy Center, looking southeast
Accident
DateJanuary 29, 2025 (2025-01-29)
Summary Mid-air collision, under investigation
Site Potomac River, Washington, D.C., U.S.
38°50′37″N77°1′35″W / 38.84361°N 77.02639°W / 38.84361; -77.02639
Total fatalities67 [1]
Total survivors0 [1]
First aircraft
American Eagle CRJ-700 N709PS at Charlotte, 2022 (cropped).jpg
N709PS, the aircraft involved in the accident, photographed in April 2022
Type Bombardier CRJ701ER
Operator PSA Airlines dba American Eagle [a]
IATA flight No.OH5342/AA5342
ICAO flight No.JIA5342
Call signBLUE STREAK 5342
Registration N709PS
Flight origin Wichita Dwight D. Eisenhower National Airport, Wichita, Kansas, U.S. [2] [3]
Destination Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Arlington, Virginia, U.S.
Occupants64
Passengers60
Crew4
Fatalities64
Survivors0
Second aircraft
Sikorsky UH-60L Black Hawk 00-26860 10 30 18 (cropped).jpg
00-26860, the helicopter involved in the accident, photographed in October 2018
Type Sikorsky UH-60L Black Hawk
Operator 12th Aviation Battalion, United States Army
Call signPAT25
Registration00-26860 [4]
Flight origin Davison Army Airfield, Fort Belvoir, Virginia, U.S. [5]
Occupants3
Crew3
Fatalities3
Survivors0

On January 29, 2025, a Bombardier CRJ700 airliner, American Airlines Flight 5342 (operated by PSA Airlines as American Eagle), [a] and a United States Army Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter, operating as Priority Air Traffic 25, collided mid-air over the Potomac River in Washington, D.C.. The collision occurred at 8:47 p.m. about one-half mile (800 m) short of runway 33 at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Arlington, Virginia. All 67 people aboard both aircraft were killed in the crash, including 64 passengers and crew on the airliner and the 3 crew of the helicopter. It was the first major U.S. commercial passenger flight crash in nearly 16 years since Colgan Air Flight 3407 in 2009, and the deadliest U.S. air disaster in nearly 24 years. [6] [7] [ discuss ]

Contents

Flight 5342 was on final approach into Reagan National Airport after flying a scheduled route from Wichita Dwight D. Eisenhower National Airport in Wichita, Kansas, while the helicopter crew was performing a required annual flying evaluation with night vision goggles out of Davison Army Airfield in Fairfax County, Virginia. Flight 5342 was at an altitude of about 300 feet (100 m) when the collision occurred. Both aircraft had communicated with air traffic control before they collided. The helicopter crew reported twice that they had visual contact with the airliner and would maintain separation from it.[ discuss ]

Background

Aircraft

Flight 5342 was operated by a 20-year-old Bombardier CRJ700, a regional jet commonly used for short- to medium-haul flights. It was configured as a CRJ701ER, denoting a slightly higher seating capacity and extended range. Manufactured in September 2004, it bore the manufacturer's serial number 10165 and was registered as N709PS. [8] [9] PSA Airlines is owned by the American Airlines Group, [10] which is also the parent company of American Airlines. [11] No problems were reported as the plane took off from Wichita on its way to Washington. [3] [12]

The helicopter involved was a U.S. Army Sikorsky UH-60L Black Hawk [13] registered as 00-26860. [4] The helicopter was configured for use as executive transportation for senior U.S. officials and soldiers, and was flying under the callsign PAT25, indicating a "Priority Air Transport" flight. [2] [14] No senior officials were on board the helicopter. [2] [14] The helicopter, of B Company of the 12th Aviation Battalion at Fort Belvoir, was on an annual and night vision goggles check flight out of Davison Army Airfield when the collision occurred. [15] [16] [5] The helicopter was part of the Continuity of Government Plan, with the flight being a routine re-training of aircrew in night flight along the corridor that elements of the US government would use to evacuate the capital in an emergency. [17]

Passengers and crew

The airliner carried 60 passengers and four crew members: a captain, a first officer and two flight attendants. [18] The captain, Jonathan Campos, 34, had worked with the airline for six years, and was a Federal Flight Deck Officer. [19] The first officer, Samuel Lilley, 28, had worked with the airline for two years. [20] [21] [22]

The helicopter had a crew of three Army personnel:

Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport

The airspace around Reagan National Airport is among the world's most complex and closely monitored; it is restricted on both sides of the Potomac River to protect government buildings in Washington, D.C. [30] Efforts have been made to reduce its congestion, but Congress approved more flights in 2024. [31] Military helicopter operations add to the complexity and include a helicopter corridor that passes within 15 feet (4.6 m) vertically of the approach for runway 33. [32]

On the night of the collision, staffing at the tower was "not normal for the time of day and volume of traffic," according to an internal preliminary Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) safety report. [33] A single controller handled helicopters in and around the airport and instructed landing and departing planes at the time of the crash. "Those jobs typically are assigned to two controllers, rather than one" at that time. The duties are normally combined at 9:30 p.m., when traffic has slackened. But before the collision, an air traffic control (ATC) supervisor combined the responsibilities, to allow one air traffic controller to leave early. The union that represents air traffic controllers cautioned against assuming the combined role would make conditions unsafe. [34]

The New York Times reported that, as of September 2023, the tower at Reagan Airport was nearly a third below targeted staffing levels. The staffing shortage has forced many controllers to work up to six days a week and 10 hours daily. [33]

Accident

Flight paths of the helicopter and regional jet, with an approximate location of the collision Preliminary map for 2025 Potomac River mid-air collision.jpg
Flight paths of the helicopter and regional jet, with an approximate location of the collision

At 8:43 p.m. EST (01:43  UTC), flight 5342 was flying a visual approach to runway 1 when it made initial contact with the Reagan National control tower. The controller asked if the crew could switch to runway 33. The crew accepted the switch and was cleared to land on runway 33. The helicopter was about 1.1 nautical miles [nmi] (2.0 km; 1.3 mi) west of the Key Bridge following Helicopter Route 1 to Helicopter Route 4. At 8:46 p.m., about two minutes before the collision, the controller called the helicopter crew advising them of a CRJ700, at an altitude of 1,200 feet (370 m), south of the Woodrow Wilson Memorial Bridge, circling to runway 33. The part of the transmission advising that the CRJ was "circling" was not captured by the helicopter's cockpit voice and data recorder and may not have been heard by the helicopter crew. The helicopter crew acknowledged that they had the jet in sight and requested visual separation—meaning that they could see and maintain separation from the aircraft on their own—which the controller approved. Still, it is unclear whether they were acknowledging the correct aircraft. [15] [35] [36] [ discuss ]

At 8:47 p.m. EST, twenty seconds before the collision, the controller asked the helicopter crew if they had the CRJ in sight with an audible air traffic radar conflict alert in the background. Nineteen seconds before the collision, the airliner crew received an automatic alert from the traffic collision avoidance system (TCAS) stating "Traffic, Traffic." Seventeen seconds before the collision, the controller instructed the helicopter to pass behind Flight 5342. One of the helicopter crew members depressed a mic for 0.8 seconds to communicate with the controller during this transmission, which may have caused the "pass behind" part of the transmission to be missed by the helicopter crew. The helicopter crew again confirmed they had an airplane in sight and requested visual separation from the airliner, which the controller approved again. The instructor pilot in the helicopter told the pilot flying that they believed the controller was asking the aircraft to move to the east bank of the Potomac River. Seven seconds before the collision, the airliner turned to final for runway 33. One second before the crash, the airliner increased its pitch with its elevators deflected close to its maximum nose-up travel. [15]

Security camera footage from one of the airport terminals shows the two aircraft colliding.

The two aircraft collided at 8:47:59. The recorded radio altitude of the Black Hawk at the time of the collision was 278 feet (85 m). [15] The helicopter exploded and both aircraft crashed into the Potomac River. The airliner's airspeed was 128 miles per hour (206 km/h; 111 kn). [37] The CRJ700's radio transponder ceased transmitting about 2,400 feet (730 m) short of Runway 33. [1] [38] The collision was captured by a webcam at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, [39] [40] and another video showed a brief trail of fire. [41] Other videos showed that the collision may have damaged the rotor blades of the Black Hawk and the left wing of the CRJ700 as the airliner fell in a left-hand spiral into the water. [42] Witnesses reported that the airliner "split in half" upon impact, while the helicopter crashed upside down near the airliner. [43] A pilot in another aircraft confirmed seeing the crash to an air traffic controller and reported seeing flares from the opposite side of the Potomac as his flight was on short final. [2]

The airliner was equipped with a traffic collision avoidance system (TCAS). However, TCAS generally inhibits its resolution advisories when the airplane is fewer than 1,000 feet (300 m) above ground level. This precaution is taken to avoid guiding an aircraft into potential collisions with terrain or other aircraft in congested terminal airspace and to reduce pilot cognitive load during critical phases of flight. [44] Within three hours of the collision, authorities confirmed fatalities. [45] [46] By 2:50 a.m. the following morning, no survivors had been reported, and search and rescue operations were described as "becoming more grim". [12] By afternoon, all 67 people onboard both aircraft were presumed dead. [47] [48] [49]

It was the first major commercial passenger flight accident in the U.S. in nearly 16 years, following Colgan Air Flight 3407 in 2009. It was also the first fatal crash involving American Airlines since Flight 587 on November 12, 2001, [50] as well as the first fatal crash of a CRJ700 series aircraft. [51] It was the first crash in the Potomac River since Air Florida Flight 90 on January 13, 1982. [52]

Emergency response

NTSB drone footage, with Reagan National Airport's runway 33 in the background

Chief John Donnelly of the District of Columbia Fire and Emergency Medical Services Department (DC FEMS) said emergency responders were notified of an aircraft crash at 8:48 p.m. The first units arrived at the scene at 8:58 p.m., where they discovered the aircraft in the water. [53] DC FEMS was joined by emergency personnel from the Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia, Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority Fire and Rescue Department, United States Coast Guard, Maryland State Police, along with other local, state, and federal agencies. Additionally, several tour boats from City Cruises sailed from the Washington Sailing Marina to help with search and rescue operations. [18]

Fireboats and divers were deployed to search for victims and survivors; cold temperatures, strong winds, ice, and murky water hampered rescue efforts. The water temperature near the crash site was recorded at 35 °F (2 °C). On January 30, the rescue operation turned into a recovery mission. [54] By February 4, all bodies had been recovered, including the three soldiers in the helicopter, and all of them were identified by February 5. [55] [23] [56] [57] [58] After the collision, Reagan National Airport suspended all takeoffs and landings, diverting flights to nearby airports, including Dulles, Baltimore/Washington, [59] and Richmond. [60] The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority extended Silver Line service to help passengers whose flights were diverted to Dulles and dispatched "warming buses" to help relief operations. [61] [18] The airport remained closed for over fourteen hours, until 11:00 a.m. on January 30. [62]

The fuselage of Flight 5342 was found upside down in three sections in the river and is being recovered. [12] The search for debris was extended to the Woodrow Wilson Bridge, three miles (5 km) south of the airport. [1] A crane used to lift debris after the March 2024 collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore was brought to help pick up plane wreckage, [63] and the U.S. Navy also sent two barges to recover heavy items. [64] According to federal officials, the wreckage of the helicopter was also recovered and was transported to a secure location. [65]

Casualties

Figure skating community

Among the passengers were 28 U.S. Figure Skating athletes, coaches, and family members returning from a national development camp held in conjunction with the 2025 U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Wichita, Kansas. This included eleven skaters, aged 11–16; thirteen parents; and four coaches. [66] [67] [68]

The coaches were all former Soviet/Russian figure skaters. Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov had won gold medals in pair skating at the 1994 World Figure Skating Championships. Inna Volyanskaya had also competed in pairs, while Alexandr Kirsanov was an ice dancer. [69] [70] [71] [72] It was the second time members of the U.S. Figure Skating team died in an aviation accident, after the 1961 crash of Sabena Flight 548 in Belgium. [73] Ever since that crash, a former competitor said, it has been rare to see so many American skaters flying together. [74]

Other deaths

Other passengers included four members of the D.C.-based UA Steamfitters Local 602 union; [75] three students and six parents from schools of Fairfax County Public Schools in Virginia; [21] a civil rights attorney; [76] a colonel of the Philippine National Police; [77] the president-elect of the National Association of Biology Teachers; [78] two Chinese nationals, [79] two Polish-American nationals, [80] an unspecified number of German nationals; [81] [ needs update ] and a Danish citizen. [82]

Aftermath

FAA chart showing the helicopter routes near Reagan National. Routes 1 and 4 can be seen over the upper and lower Potomac River respectively. DC Helicopter Route 1 and 4.jpg
FAA chart showing the helicopter routes near Reagan National. Routes 1 and 4 can be seen over the upper and lower Potomac River respectively.
Wreckage of the PSA plane the morning after the crash Coast Guard, multiple partner agencies, responding to plane crash in Potomac River (8847923).jpg
Wreckage of the PSA plane the morning after the crash
Helicopter wreckage after the crash Coast Guard, multiple partner agencies, responding to plane crash in Potomac River (8847920).jpg
Helicopter wreckage after the crash

On January 31, 2025, the FAA restricted helicopter flights near the airport. The FAA partially closed both the route that the Black Hawk was on when it collided with the CRJ700 and another route that runs south of the Key Bridge in Washington and connects the neighborhood of Georgetown to Rosslyn, Virginia. These routes, designated Route 4 and Route 1 respectively, remain open only to police, medical, air defense, and presidential transport flights. [83] On the same day, PSA Airlines retired flight number 5342 and said that the new number for the Wichita to Washington National route would be Flight 5677. [78] [84] [85]

Separately, two staff members of the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority were taken into custody on suspicion of providing CNN with surveillance footage of the crash. [86] [87]

A vigil was held at the Wichita City Council chambers in memory of the victims. [7]

Investigation

Remains of the wreckage with the skyline in the background PSA Airlines Flight 5342 wreckage with skyline and runway for bearings.png
Remains of the wreckage with the skyline in the background

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), the FAA, the U.S. Department of Defense, and the U.S. Army announced they would launch investigations into the collision. [1] The NTSB prepared an investigation team to send to the accident site. [18] After the crash retaining needed personnel, the agency acquired an exemption from the "Fork in the Road" memo which purported to allow all of its agents to quit with severance paid through September 2025. [88] The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) also stated it would help with the response. However, there were no indications of terrorism or criminal activity. [18] The Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) deployed two investigators to help the investigation, since the Bombardier CRJ700 was designed and manufactured in Canada. [89] On the evening of January 30, the flight recorder ("black box") of Flight 5342 was recovered from the wreckage and brought to the NTSB lab for evaluation. [90] [91] The helicopter's flight recorder was recovered on January 31. [92] [90] [93]

NTSB investigators recovering pieces of wreckage from the Potomac River on February 2 NTSB recovery of crash related items on the Potomac River, 2 February 2025 - 2.jpg
NTSB investigators recovering pieces of wreckage from the Potomac River on February 2
Flight recorder of the UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter recovered by the NTSB from the Potomac River on February 2 Flight data recorder from NTSB recovery of crash related items on the Potomac River, 2 February 2025 - 1 (cropped).jpg
Flight recorder of the UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter recovered by the NTSB from the Potomac River on February 2

According to the NTSB, at the moment of impact, the helicopter was at a radio altitude of 278 feet (85 m). [15] Reagan National requires helicopters on that route to stay at or below 200 feet (61 m) above mean sea level. [94] The NTSB is investigating what the barometric altimeter displayed to the helicopter crew was, which was not recorded by the flight recorder. Investigators would normally calculate the barometric altimeter displayed to the crew using pressure altitude recorded by the flight recorder, but investigators determined that the data was not valid. [15] [95]

Senators Ted Cruz and Tammy Duckworth addressed questions about the automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast system (ADS-B) which was reportedly turned off on the Black Hawk. Some flight data was being sent from the aircraft but the safety system sends what is considered the most accurate data. [96] The NTSB confirmed ADS-B was not broadcasting from the helicopter and said they would investigate if there was an equipment malfunction or it was turned off. [97] A single air traffic controller was managing both aircraft at the time of the crash, an arrangement deemed "not normal" for that time of day at the airport. [33] According to the helicopter's cockpit voice and data recorder, the helicopter crew may have missed parts of two transmissions made by the air traffic controller regarding the jet. Two minutes before the collision, the part of the transmission stating the plane was "circling" to runway 33 was not heard on the recording. Seventeen seconds before the crash, the part of the transmission stating "pass behind the" was interrupted by the helicopter crew keying their mic to communicate with the air traffic controller. [15] [95]

About nineteen seconds before impact, the crew of flight 5342 received an automated traffic advisory alert from the TCAS system. Data from the flight recorder showed the PSA jet pitched up about one second before impact, but investigators did not say whether this was an attempted evasive maneuver by the PSA pilots. [98] [35]

Responses

Aviation

American Airlines CEO Robert Isom, in a video statement produced by the airline, said that the airliner pilots were experienced. [99] American Airlines also launched a hotline for family members of passengers on Flight 5342. [2]

Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger, an aviation safety expert and the pilot of US Airways Flight 1549 that ditched in the Hudson River in 2009, argued for more safety zones and restrictions on flight patterns. [100]

Domestic

President Donald Trump was briefed on the collision shortly after. Shortly after midnight, he wrote on Truth Social questioning the actions of the air traffic controllers and asserting that the situation could have been prevented. [101] He also criticized the helicopter crew for flying too high. [102] Later that morning, Trump released a statement calling the crash a "terrible accident," thanking emergency responders and saying of the victims: "May God bless their souls." [103] [18] [12]

Trump criticized the previous Democratic administrations, including former Biden transportation secretary Pete Buttigieg for inclusivity rules that he said had reduced air safety. However, his first administration also supported those rules. [104]

Trump said that he would meet with families of the victims, but rebuffed the idea of visiting the site of the accident after being pressed by reporters during a briefing, asking, "What's the site? The water? You want me to go swimming?" The remark was widely criticized. [110] [ better source needed ]

Response to Trump's comments

Coast Guard response teams at the scene on January 30 Coast Guard responds to aviation incident in the Potomac River (8848276).jpg
Coast Guard response teams at the scene on January 30

Trump received pushback and criticism for his claims that DEI initiatives were to blame for the crash, including by Buttigieg, who said that Trump's claims were "despicable" and that he should be "leading, not lying". [111] Representative Ilhan Omar of Minnesota criticized Trump for "blaming this deadly crash on minorities and white women" and that the comments were "disgusting, racist and sexist". [101] Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York also criticized Trump's remarks, calling them "idle speculation". Maryland Senator Chris Van Hollen criticized Trump by stating that he was "making a political show out of this awful tragedy" about the crash. [43] Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut stated that Trump was "blaming Black people and blaming women who work at the FAA without any evidence." [112] Representative Jesús "Chuy" García of Illinois stated that Trump was "exploiting disaster to continue to spread racist lies and divisiveness across the country." [78] Sully Sullenberger responded to Trump by stating that "an airplane cannot know or care" about a pilot's race or gender but can only care about "what the control inputs are" and that he was "disgusted" by Trump's comments. [100] [92]

Meanwhile, Trump administration officials agreed with his claim that such policies may have caused the crash. [113] [114] Vice president JD Vance said, "When you don't have the best standards in who you're hiring, it means on the one hand, you're not getting the best people in government. But on the other hand, it puts stresses on the people who are already there." [113] [115] Sean Duffy, the United States Secretary of Transportation, said, "We can only accept the best and the brightest in positions of safety," while Pete Hegseth, the United States Secretary of Defense, said, "The era of DEI is gone at the Defense Department and we need the best and brightest," including in "our air traffic control." [114] Duffy also said, "What I've seen so far, do I think this was preventable? Absolutely." [116] Hegseth also said that the helicopter crew was "fairly experienced," and undergoing "routine annual retraining—night flights on a standard [flight] corridor for a continuity-of-government mission." [117] White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt supported Trump's claim by stating that it was "common sense" to be concerned about potential negative effects of DEI initiatives. [43]

International

The International Olympic Committee said they "extend their heartfelt sympathies to all those affected, which we understand may include Olympians, young athletes, and their support staff." [12] At the 2025 European Figure Skating Championships, which had begun the morning of the collision, a moment of silence was observed to mourn the figure skaters and family members lost. The International Skating Union and many international skating federations also offered condolences. [118]

Pope Francis sent a telegram to the White House expressing condolences for the victims of the collision. [119] [120] The Russian Embassy in the United States sent condolences to the families of the Russian nationals who died in the crash. [43] The Chinese foreign ministry expressed condolences to the families of the crash victims and demanded a full investigation of the disaster. [79] Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau offered his condolences "to [the] grieving family members and loved ones who are facing unimaginable loss." [121]

See also

Notes

  1. 1 2 American Eagle is a brand name used by American Airlines for regional airline flights it sells under codeshare agreements with six partner airlines including PSA Airlines. PSA Airlines is owned by the American Airlines Group, which is also the parent company of American Airlines.

References

PD-icon.svg This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the National Transportation Safety Board.

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Baldor, Lolita; Copp, Tara; Melley, Brian; Skene, Lea (January 30, 2025). "Collision between helicopter and jetliner kills 67 in nation's worst air disaster in a generation". Associated Press . Archived from the original on January 30, 2025. Retrieved January 30, 2025.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Regan, Helen; Romine, Taylor; Faheid, Dalia; Lynch, Jamiel; Vera, Amir; Park, Hanna (January 29, 2025). "American Airlines plane crash near Washington, DC; Reagan National Airport takeoffs and landings halted". CNN . Archived from the original on January 30, 2025. Retrieved January 30, 2025. A US Army Blackhawk (H-60) helicopter collided with passenger aircraft near Washington on Wednesday, according to two US defense officials.
  3. 1 2 Harvey, Lex (January 30, 2025). "What we know about the passenger plane collision near Washington, DC". CNN . Archived from the original on January 30, 2025. Retrieved January 30, 2025.
  4. 1 2 Charpentreau, Clément (January 30, 2025). "American Eagle flight collides with Black Hawk helicopter". AeroTime. Retrieved January 30, 2025.
  5. 1 2 "Airliner, Army helicopter collide over Potomac River". Defense One. Government Executive. January 30, 2025. Retrieved January 30, 2025.
  6. ↑ Kim, Juliana (January 31, 2025). "41 bodies recovered from D.C. plane crash site as search continues. Here's what to know". NPR. Retrieved February 4, 2025.
  7. 1 2 "Midair collision kills 67 people in the deadliest US air disaster in almost a quarter century". AP News. January 31, 2025. Archived from the original on January 31, 2025. Retrieved January 31, 2025.
  8. ↑ '"`UNIQ--templatestyles-00000017-QINU`"' "FAA Registry (N709PS)". Federal Aviation Administration.
  9. ↑ Hradecky, Simon (February 14, 2025). "Crash: PSA CRJ7 at Washington on Jan 29th 2025, midair collision with helicopter on final". The Aviation Herald . Retrieved February 18, 2025.
  10. ↑ Gavin, Mike (January 29, 2025). "What is PSA Airlines? What to know after plane crash near DCA". NBC Washington. Archived from the original on January 30, 2025. Retrieved January 31, 2025.
  11. 1 2 Tanyos, Faris; Czachor, Emily Mae; Freiman, Jordan (January 30, 2025). "What we know about the American Airlines plane and Army helicopter crash over D.C.'s Potomac River". CBS News . Archived from the original on January 30, 2025. Retrieved January 30, 2025.
  12. 1 2 3 4 5 Regan, Helen; Romine, Taylor; Faheid, Dalia; Lynch, Jamiel; Vera, Amir; Park, Hanna; Tsui, Karina (January 30, 2025). "Live updates: American Airlines plane, Black Hawk helicopter collide near Washington, DC; no survivors recovered". CNN . Archived from the original on January 30, 2025. Retrieved January 30, 2025.
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  22. ↑ Hanna, John; Casey, Michael; Geller, Adam (January 31, 2025). "Teen figure skaters and their coaches, group of hunters and students among victims of air crash". APnews.com. Wichita, KS: Associated Press. Archived from the original on February 3, 2025. Retrieved February 5, 2025.
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  31. ↑ "Pilots have long worried about DC's complex airspace contributing to a catastrophe". AP News. January 31, 2025. Retrieved January 31, 2025.
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  33. 1 2 3 Ember, Sydney; Steel, Emily (January 30, 2025). "Staffing Was 'Not Normal' at Air Traffic Tower During Plane Crash". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331. Archived from the original on January 30, 2025. Retrieved February 1, 2025.
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