- Trump blames Biden’s administration for employing workers who “suffer severe intellectual disabilities, psychiatric problems…”
Sixty-seven people including world champion figure skaters and the ‘future’ of the sport are believed to have died after a passenger plane on approach to Reagan National Airport near Washington, DC, collided Wednesday night with a US Army helicopter midair, sending both aircraft into the Potomac River below, officials said.
As of Thursday morning, 27 bodies had been recovered from the plane and one from the helicopter, according to Fire and EMS Chief John A. Donnelly. By late that afternoon, more than 40 bodies had been recovered, multiple sources with knowledge of the recovery told CNN. There were 64 people on board the plane – which was flying from Wichita, Kansas – and three soldiers in the Army helicopter, according to DC Mayor Muriel Bowser.
“Sadly, there are no survivors,” President Donald Trump said in a news conference at the White House late Thursday morning.
“This was a dark and excruciating night in our nation’s capital and in our nation’s history, and a tragedy of terrible proportions,” Trump said. “As one nation, we grieve for every precious soul that has been taken from us so suddenly.”
Among the dead are American Airlines pilots Jonathan Campos and Samuel Lilley, two flight attendants and several members of the US figure skating community, according to friends, family and sports groups.
President Donald Trump said he plans to meet with victims’ families, though he did not say when.
Here’s what CNN further says about the crash – now the subject of a National Transportation Safety Board investigation and the deadliest aviation disaster in the US in more than two decades.
Collision in notoriously busy skies
American Airlines Flight 5342 was due to land at the Reagan National airport Wednesday night when the aircraft – a Bombardier CRJ700 regional jet – collided midair with the Army helicopter as the plane approached Runway 33, according to the Federal Aviation Administration and defense officials.
Flight records showed the passenger plane was expected to land around 9 p.m. But at 8:53 p.m., DC police began receiving calls about “an aircraft crash above the Potomac River,” the agency said.
The crash appears to have been a “very quick, rapid impact” and so far there is no indication that emergency evacuation slides were deployed, National Transportation Safety Board member J. Todd Inman said. He cautioned that the information is still preliminary.
A video of the crash filmed by EarthCam shows what appears to be the helicopter and plane colliding in the sky, resulting in a fiery explosion.
The collision occurred while the helicopter with the 12th Aviation Battalion was conducting a routine training for pilots who take part in “continuity of government” missions, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said at the White House Thursday.
“Tragically, last night, a mistake was made,” Hegseth said. “There was some, some sort of an elevation issue that we have immediately begun investigating at the DOD and Army level.”
The battalion is currently on an operational pause, pending a review, Hegseth said. An investigation will seek to determine whether the helicopter was in the proper corridor and at the right altitude at the time of the collision, he said.
Newly sworn-in Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy had earlier indicated both the helicopter and the American Airlines flight were operating in “standard” flight patterns.
“At this time, we don’t know why the military aircraft came into the path of the PSA aircraft,” American Airlines CEO Robert Isom said Thursday morning.
At the time of the collision, one air traffic controller was working two different tower positions and was handling both local and helicopter traffic, an air traffic control source told CNN. The source described the set-up as not uncommon. However, the New York Times reported that an internal preliminary Federal Aviation Administration report says staffing was “not normal for the time of day and volume of traffic.”
The Blame game
Meanwhile, Trump blamed former President Joe Biden’s administration for encouraging the Federal Aviation Administration to recruit workers “who suffer severe intellectual disabilities, psychiatric problems and other mental and physical conditions under a diversity and inclusion hiring initiative.” He added that the program allowed for the hiring of people with hearing and vision issues as well as paralysis, epilepsy and “dwarfism.”
Trump did not share any evidence that unqualified people were being put in critical positions like air traffic control, and he acknowledged that there was as yet no indication that air traffic controllers at Reagan National Airport made any mistakes.
Asked why he was blaming diversity initiatives, Trump said, “because I have common sense, and unfortunately a lot of people don’t.”
Trump said air traffic controllers needed to be brilliant to ensure safety.
“They have to be talented, naturally talented geniuses,” he said. “You can’t have regular people doing their job.”
Trump complained specifically about Pete Buttigieg, who was Biden’s transportation secretary and was a contender to challenge Trump for the White House in 2020, calling him “a disaster.”
“He’s run it right into the ground with his diversity,” Trump said, adding profanity to his description of Buttigieg.
Buttigieg responded in a post on X, calling Trump’s comments “despicable.”
“As families grieve, Trump should be leading, not lying,” he added.
As if to underscore Trump’s point, the White House invited reporters into the Oval Office to watch him sign another executive order that officials said would stop “woke policies” in federal aviation. Trump had already signed an executive order ending diversity initiatives at the FAA last week.
“We want the most competent people,” Trump said. “We don’t care what race they are.”
Asked if he plans to visit the crash site, Trump said he would meet with family members of the victims.
“What’s the site? The water? You want me to go swimming?” the president said.
The FAA’s diversity efforts aren’t new. Before Trump’s administration removed them from the agency’s website this month, they were promoted there since at least 2013, including during Trump’s first term in office. Substantially similar language about seeking candidates with disabilities was on the site during both Biden’s term and Trump’s first term, according to snapshots from the Internet Archive.
Former FAA administrator Michael Whitaker responded to accusations that the agency was prioritizing diversity over qualified candidates last year, saying that while the FAA seeks qualified candidates from a range of sources, each must “meet rigorous qualifications that of course vary by position.”
The plane crash was the first major disaster of Trump’s new term, and his response evoked his frequent — and controversial — briefings on the COVID-19 pandemic. His handling of the pandemic helped sour voters on him as he failed to win reelection in 2020.
After telling the families of the dead that “our hearts are shattered alongside yours” and leading a moment of silence, Trump proceeded to speculate about what had occurred. “We do not know what led to this crash but we have some very strong opinions,” he said.
Trump wondered if the helicopter pilot was wearing nightvision goggles, declared that “you had a pilot problem” and that the helicopter was “going at an angle that was unbelievably bad.” He questioned why the Army pilot didn’t change course, saying that “you can stop a helicopter very quickly.”
He also mused about the air traffic controllers, saying of the two aircraft, “for whatever reason they were at the same elevation,” adding “they should have been at a different height.”
Even as Trump rushed to publicly ponder reasons for the crash, the National Transportation Safety Board was more circumspect as it begins examining what happened.
“We look at facts, on our investigation, and that will take some time,” said Jennifer Homendy, the board’s chair.
Democrats criticized Trump’s remarks on Thursday.
“It’s one thing for internet pundits to spew off conspiracy theories, it’s another for the president of the United States,” said Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer of New York.
Vice President JD Vance, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth all lined up behind Trump to praise his leadership and echo his concerns about diversity programs and hiring.
“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,” Vance said, “But on the other hand, it puts stresses on the people who are already there.”
Trump made a point to tell Duffy, who was sworn in on Tuesday as Buttigieg’s replacement, “It’s not your fault.” Duffy took the White House podium alongside Trump and declared, “When Americans take off in airplanes, they should expect to land at their destination.” Duffy added, “We will not accept excuses.”
Federal officials have been raising concerns about an overtaxed and understaffed air traffic control system for years, especially after a series of close calls between planes at U.S. airports. They have cited issues with competitive pay, long hours, intensive training and mandatory retirements for contributing to the staffing shortages.
“While these events are incredibly rare, our safety system is showing clear signs of strain that we cannot ignore,” Homendy told lawmakers in 2023. Aviation experts issued a report around the same time saying that the FAA needs better staffing, equipment and technology.
