it was flying out of belvoir, fort belvoir, not too far, just a little bit south of reagan national airport in virginia. but the status of those three individuals is still unknown staff. that's what we are still working on here, as well as any information about exactly how this could have occurred. stephanie, i got to tell you, this is a very crowded airspace, and a lot of that crowding comes from helicopters, including military, coast guard, d.c. police. there are a lot of helicopters that are in the sky around this area. even ospreys and marine corps helicopters. and there are a lot of military bases right in this area. it's not reagan national airport, of course, right near bolling air force base, fort belvoir. fort myer right around there. but we are really trying to get any more detail than we can. so far, all we can say a u.s. army black hawk helicopter believed to have three individuals on board, was involved in this collision. stephanie. >> and was this a normal night or was there particularly, particularly heavy air traffic? >> so as of now, we are not aware of anything that was sp

now, it's unclear whether it was heading to fort belvoir or that it took off from fort belvoir, but that is the extent of the information we're getting right now. and and what that indicates to me is that this was a black hawk helicopter that was likely attached to the 12th aviation battalion, and that is based at davison army airfield at fort belvoir, and the 12th aviation battalion. interestingly, it does a lot of transportation of senior dod and army officials. it's known as a priority air transport, but we should be very clear here that according to an army official, there were no vips on board this flight. there was no one, no senior army officials, no senior dod officials, no senior u.s. government officials on this aircraft at the time that it collided with this passenger plane. we are told instead that it was three crew members, three u.s. army soldiers that were on board this blackhawk. so as of right now, that is the extent of what we know. still trying to get more information from the pentagon. and we should note as well, that the secretary of defense, pete hegseth, he tweeted

camp. en from reporting it was a training belvoir camp. en was m fort belvoir camp.bers on the four crew members were on the we heard a from plane we heard a statement from the flight attendants assaying " the flight attendants a'saynog " the union were two of the union members were on the flight. 0ur two of the union members were on the flight. our partner news there news 7 7 ”therewill cbs news reporting there will be a press conference held at airport in the airport in about a0 we have more then. there are information then. there are multiple agencies the j the faa as investigating this, the faa as well as the ntsb. you can well as the ntsb. as you can see, a search see, a massive search and rescue operation way. as rescue operation—underat-say. as can see, currently, it is you can see, currently, it is freezing temperatures, we according 1 according to the hearing according to the national weather service, temperatures ii dash two celsius, 27 degrees temperatures ii dash two celsius, 27 are ees temperatures ii dash two celsius, 27 are even fahrenheit, they are ev

fort belvoir typically flies vip's around washington area, army brass. on typical day black hawks are a common sight in northern virginia. there is an air corridor above 395 and over the potomac river where this black hawk was flying last night 9:00 p.m. pentagon is located just on other side of reagan international airport. this is busy air corridor, one of the busiest airports in the country. their runways see more traffic than most airports. we have families awaiting information on their loved ones. no report of survivors. the potomac waters are freezing. it was warmer in washington yesterday, this area has seen arctic temperatures for weeks. the figure skaters onboard, we have a statement from u.s. figure skating saying u.s. figure skating can confirm several members were aboard flight 5342 which collided with the helicopter yesterday evening in washington, d.c., athletes, coaches and family members were returning home from camp held with the championships in wichita, kansas. we are devastated by this tragedy and hold the victims families closely in

blackhawks out of fort belvoir flying overhead frequently.rive on interstate 395, that's, of course, restricted airspace. also an air corridor. the potomac was a air corridor. that black hawk was south along the potomac. the on short final, had its flaps extended, seconds away from landing at reagan. it was coming in from the south. but, runway 33 as the letter suggests it's a compass. it's northwesterly runway just, you know, due north 360. make left handed bank turn state of maryland. other side of the those pilots would have been focused and have the right away. getting that aircraft safely back to reagan is not clear what caused this collision. the visual flight rules, the helicopter you would think would have seen that stern passing behind situation as we await update 7:30 eastern, guys. >> lawrence: lucas, i know you are normally at the pentagon and have you sources in the pentagon and we don't want to speculate. but i'm just curious we all saw the video and it's jarring. it was jarring for the president of the united states. has terror

and not more than 10 to 20 miles away from fort belvoir, where many of the blackhawk helicopters often train and are housed. black hawk helicopters often are the type that are carrying vips here tonight. every person on board that aircraft, the helicopter, a very important person as we learn and wait to learn their fate. tonight. caitlin. >> yeah, we are told it was three members of the u.s. army who were on board that helicopter. and of course, many more passengers on that plane. laura coates will continue to check in with you outside of reagan national airport. cnn's aviation correspondent, pete muntean is here with me. pete, i know you've been checking in with your sources. what is the latest that you've heard as just i mean, this is undeniably a tragedy that we are all watching unfold. >> tragic that it was even able to happen. and the question now is, when will this turn from a rescue mission and turn into a recovery mission on what is a moonless night in the nation's capital and an incredibly difficult scene for crews there on the banks of the potomac river, you can see the incre

officials say the blackhawk helicopter was coming from fort belvoir and had three people on board for that. an army official tells nbc news it's believed they were on a training flight. search and rescue operations are now underway, and this is a live look from outside of reagan national airport, where first responders are dealing with difficult conditions between the wind, the dark and the cold. as of now, no survivors have been found. nbc washington reports at least 12 bodies have been recovered. they're citing two sources familiar with the search efforts. overnight, u.s. figure skating confirmed several of its members were on board this american airlines flight. the organization says athletes, coaches and family members were returning home from home from the national development camp that was held in conjunction with the skating championships in wichita. meanwhile, reagan national airport is expected to be closed until at least 11 a.m. this morning. takeoffs and landings were halted around 9 p.m. shortly after the crash. joining us now from alexandria, virginia, along the potomac r

we just see an array of lights, you talked about this helicopter being out of port belvoir, that is just south of here. if you fly out to the north you virtually fly over the pentagon as you make this hard bank to the left, going north over the potomac river, if you were to drive south of washington, d.c., on the george washington parkway you would eventually get to port belvoir, it's down to the south past mount vernon. that is not very far, i drive across what is called the 14th o washington, d.c., every day or i take the metro in which goes across, but you see constant very low helicopter traffic, usually military, sometimes going to the white house for the president, under the biden administration, under the trump administration, these flights coming and sometimes they are going to the pentagon, also going to fort belvoir certainly, they live very low compared to those aircraft because they go out, they bank immediately to the left is not much of a concern, but that is where that accident appears to have happen tonight and to do a reset, we are south of the airport, the bulk of the a

fort belvoir, virginia, which is near mount vernon, not far from here. that's where this blackhawk helicopter was based. they have a helipad. there are helipads all over. there's a helipad at the cia complex in mclean, virginia, north of the city. there are helipads all over this place. again, the air traffic with helicopters and small planes in addition to the passenger aircraft coming in and out of reagan national is extraordinary. on a given day, it is one of the busiest areas. and, um, you know, every time i have driven around this area and seen helicopters and planes crisscrossing, just you look up in awe at the skill of the air traffic controllers to be able to get the reading of all that and steer everyone around safely. i don't know how they do it, because these aircraft are going every which way all the time, and you know, uh, i can't help but wonder, have now we have just a horrible accident as a result of. >> this, i can't help but wonder all the passengers who were on inbound flights to this very airport who were wondering why there was a del

fort belvoir unit flies vip's and army brass around washington region. i'm told there were no vip's aboard the army black hawk, it was two pilots and likely a crew chief. black hawks are a frequent sight. there is air car door above the potomac river where helicopters fly. the pentagon is located just on the other side of the potomac on the other side of reagan international airplane. black hawks land there and fly around this region. right now, there are anxious family members awaiting word. there are no reports of survivors. water temperatures in the potomac are near freezing. yesterday was a warmer day, about 60 degrees, this region has seen arctic temperatures as we saw on inauguration day. potomac had sheets of ice covering it a few days ago and water temperature is near freezing. in a state from u.s. figure skatingy we are told there are members of u.s. figure skating aboard fly 5342. u.s. figure skating can confirm several members were aboard flight 5342 which collided with the helicopter yesterday in washington, d.c. athletes, coachings and famil

potomac, and flights resumed at reagan national airport, but not the aviation brigade based at fort belvoir where the black hawk launched from and the ill-fated flight. we heard from president trump, and he seemed to be blaming the helicopter crew for that collision. >> president trump: but the people in the helicopter should have seen where they were going. i can't imagine people with 20/20 vision not seeing, you know, what is happening up there. again they shouldn't have been at the same height, and going in the reverse directions or sideway directions. >> so the investigation is ongoing, and trump said dei could have played a role, and the word could have come too late, and the defense secretary said that the flight and the helicopter at the same altitude when the collision took place. >> sandra: thank you. see you shortly, and now governor youngkin is giving an update at a news conference right now. >> as we lament and cry and search for ways to express our sorrow, father, we ask for your grace upon each on of these 67 souls. father, we ask you to comfort their families and bring your p

this is fort belvoir where the helicopter was based. it hasn't been told yet but we believe that's where it was headed from the north. the white house is located roughly three miles north of the airport. all this waterway is the potomac. clear this off and advance it one time here. so this is the runway that was the intended flight pattern for american airlines flight out of wichita. as we piece this together i will just show you this is where the blackhawk at the moment of the crash was headed. sort of a southerly pattern here. here is the american airlines making that left-hand turn that folks like lucas tomlinson and john roberts are describing to us from the south heading for the north and making the bank toward the northwest to go ahead and land. this is runway 33. there will be a lot of talk about that in the days and weeks to come. this body of water really is -- if we can let's pan up here to the screen. this is what we believe is what remains of the fuselage of that plane where the watercraft was coming out. we saw a few others

. >> brian: we have not seen anyone from fort belvoir come in, we will get that. sean duffy put thoughts on truth social that this was preventable. we are covering breaking news that happened 9:00 last night in washington, d.c. official announcing massive emergency response on potomac river is now recovery effort. black hawk in midair near reagan national airport. >> at a point switching from rescue operation to a recovery operation. at this point, we don't think there are any survivors from this accident and we have recovered 27 people from the plane and one from the helicopter. >> brian: there were 60 on the american airline flight. >> ainsley: here is what we know at this hour. d.c. fire chief revealing 28 bodies recovered, 39 still missing. the passenger plane broke into three parts. 60 passengers and four crew members were onboard the jet coming out of wichita, kansas into reagan. three soldiers on board the black hawk helicopter on a training flight. the mid-air collision happened as plane approaching runway just before 9:00 last night. it was caught on came

fort belvoir, where that blackhawk took off, is in virginia as well. so you have military families as well impacted. thank you very much for your time. let's see where this investigation takes us. thank you. wow. yeah. >> it's been a really hard day for so many americans just watching what's happening there in dc. 67 people lost their lives. recovery is happening right now in frigid, terrible temperatures. and we've been looking at the pictures of the fuselage in three different pieces, as well as the helicopter both found. >> we're watching hearings on capitol hill all day as well. stay with us. cnn's special coverage continues right after this. >> advil liquid gels are faster. >> and stronger than tylenol rapid release gels, also. >> from advil. advil. targeted relief. >> the only topical. >> with four powerful. >> pain fighting ingredients that start working on contact and. lasts up to eight hours. >> the virus that causes. >> shingles is. >> sleeping in 99% of people. >> over 50, and it could strike. >> at. >> any time. >> think you're not at risk?

now, lawrence, fort belvoir is located about 14 miles south of here in virginia.ly flies vips and other army brass. on a typical day over the nation's capitol in northern virginia black hawk helicopters are a common sight in the skies. corridor above 3 # 5 and over the pooment river that's where flying in a southerly direction from washington. again that airline was on short final on runway 33. had just banked just on over the state of maryland just coming in on a northwesterly heading to that runway. runway 33 of course correspondence with the compass heading of 330 so slightly northwest 330 being true north when that collision occurred. right now there is an active search and rescue operation going. as you can see from the images over 300 first responders are along the banks of the potomac in the river. a lot of search and rescue vessels. right now there are many anxious family members waiting words on their loved ones. the water temperatures are near freezing here in the potomac. a bit warmer yesterday here in washington, d.c. about 60 degrees. this water tempe

carrying three soldiers based at fort belvoir in virginia. also there were top figure skaters from the u.s. and russia. the ntsb plans to issue a preliminary report on the deadly crash in 30 days. >> as part of any investigation, we look at the human, the machine, and the environment. so, we will look at all the humans that were involved in this accident. >> and we are begining to hear the stories of lives cut short in the collision. six members of the boston figure skating club were on board including skater spencer lane and his mom. >> just loved by everyone from the adults running the club to the smallest skaters to the people competing for a shot at the olympics. >> the investigation will include staffing levels in the control tower at reagan national airport. cbs has confirmed there was only one air traffic controller monitoring helicopter and plane traffic last night. it is a job normally done by two people before 9:30 p.m. but a supervisor combined them early. >>> so back here in the bay area, the clock is ticking toward a deadline to

�*very �* very close, 50 �*very close, 50 miles belvoir very close, 50 miles south of the airport, where to american it is american airlines it is eagle flight 53a2, the 7 7 7 the i; the is crew due, the concern is with crew and on aircraft. us and passengers on aircraft. us media reporting a plane mete 'e eeetea thefeelefie " ' been met“? e “eef�*ft'hfi �*héféfiléfie 77 7 been split mete ie eeetea thefeelefie " ' been split into, the has been split into, the helicopter is upside down in the that is what we the river. that is what we understand to but 7 but we 7 but we have 7 but we have n7ot but we have n77ot been media but we have not been able to confirm that ourselves. reuters is now as reuters is now reporting as well that there was a training flight continuing, of the flight continuing. one of the involved was a trainee pilots involved was a trainee flight, i confirm those flight, i will confirm those details and get back to. this is a very cold evening, between one and two we one and two celsius, we understand as well, as i lingerstapd as well. as i this cites cnn, says it was a flight

which is a blackhawk helicopter, belongs to the 12th aviation battalion, which is at located at fort belvoir. davidson army airfield, to be specific. and what the unit's mission is, is to fly vips and other necessary things around the various posts and bases here in the dc area. they fly a lot of people in and out of the pentagon. they fly a lot of special missions for various entities in and around the national capital region, and they also provide a service, a logistical service for the pentagon and for other military units. so it's a critical unit, and it has had a very good safety record up up until this particular incident. they've done a lot of training. there have been a lot of there's been a lot of aerial activity in the last week to ten days out of davidson army airfield and several other installations. so there's been a lot of practicing going on for these these pilots. we don't know exactly. you know, what the nature of this mission was. it, you know, almost certainly was some kind of a training mission. we don't know whether the pilots were familiar with this area, if they had ju

the army unit involved here, the aircraft, the army aircraft that was involved here was from fort belvoir, virginia, just a little ways down the potomac river, south of here. it was on an annual proficiency flight, and that this was a fairly experienced crew doing a night evaluation. they were using night vision goggles, as we understand it as well, from the secretary of defense. and still, there are questions that remain about how these two aircraft came to collide. jose, we know that the ntsb has now taken charge of the investigation here. it will work with the faa. it will also work with the army's investigative arm that looks into these sorts of incidents, incidents, and they will work together to try to figure out exactly what happened here. and perhaps more importantly, jose, try to make sure it doesn't happen again. >> yeah. and i want to bring in yamiche alcindor at the white house. yamiche, what have we heard from the white house so far? >> well, we know. >> any moment now. >> that president trump is going to come out to the briefing room and talk to reporters. this will be the f

fort belvoir is a military base just to the south. it's close to mount vernon, george washington's home just to the south of washington, dc, also along the banks of the potomac river. the thing that has struck me in the past bit, and it's gone quiet here in about the past 30 minutes. for quite a while, we had helicopters up in the air with their big searchlights scanning their beams of light down on the water. they started to get very close to the shoreline here for quite a while, and then they had several different police and fire and rescue boats. and on these piers immediately behind me, that's where some police, police officers came down and started looking in the water with their flashlights, just to see if they could pick up any debris or wreckage or, god forbid, bodies or even body parts. i was told at one point. here are some stats to know on the potomac river at this point. 3:09 a.m. eastern time. that's going to be low tide. high tide is going to come at 8:45 a.m. eastern time. so that will influence some of the search and r

an army official confirming the army h-60 helicopter originated out of fort belvoir, virginia.rt director in wichita, kansas addressing the media. >> i don't have the exact time of when this incident occurred, but we were notified fairly shortly thereafter. it just breaks our heart to hear something like this occur. and so it's devastating for everyone. >> kansas senator jerry moran describing flying the very route the plane took himself many times. >> i lobbied american airlines to begin having a direct nonstop flight service to dca. that flight has been in existence about a year. we're going to know people who are on this flight, know their family members, know somebody. so this is a very personal circumstance. >> this is the first major. >> commercial crash in the u.s. since the colgan air buffalo crash in 2009. there have been other incidents, like the asiana runway crash in 2013 where two people died. the last fatality on a plane was the woman who was partially sucked out of a southwest window in 2018. this has been the safest period for aviation in history. this crash wil

sold belvoir, virginia. army officials calling experienced crew, includh over 1,000 flight hours.as a routine annual evaluation of the pilot's ability to fly at night, the crew well aware of the route and the rules in this air space. now, while the military has not yet identified the crew, officials say one of the members was a woman. army officials confirming they did have night-vision goggles, though it's still not clear if they were wearing them. tonight, only one ofiers has been recovered. lester thank you. >>> in 60 seconds, more on how presiden diversity programs to the deadly fierc quickly followed. (sigh) if you struggle with cpap... you should check out inspire. no mask. no hose. just sleep. inspire. learn more and view important safety information at inspiresleep.com (♪♪) some people just know they could save hundreds on car insurance by checking allstate first. duke versus unc. what a storied rivalry? like you know to check your outfit first before meeting your girlfriend's family. that's a tough

to bravo company of the 12th aviation battalion, which operates out of davidson air over at fort belvoir. we want to bring in the winner of the right stuff award for his ongoing leadership and contributions to america's aerospace industry and national security, and a kansan and a friend to the show, senator jerry moran. senator, as a coloradoan, i know kansas very, very well. i think i speak for all americans, not just those of us who are from that part of the country. when i say our deepest condolences to you and your the folks from the great state of kansas. >> well, that's that's very kind of you. i'm here watching from reagan national airport across the runway, looking at the lights where your program is originating and just the scene of all the efforts that are taking place to rescue and save lives and recover. it's really i mean, we're we're so appreciative of the, the crew that the first responders and others who are trying to make every effort to make this night end better than, than it than than it would without their tremendous help. so we're appreciative of that. i appreciate

secretary pete hegseth said there was nothing unusual about the flight, which took off from nearby fort belvoirual retraining of night flights on a standard corridor for a continuity of government mission. the military does dangerous things. it does routine things on the regular basis. tragically, last night, a mistake was made. >> reporter: the pilot copilot, and crew chief ryan o'hara, who leaves behind a wife and a 1-year-old son, were killed. the army said they were all very experienced. former black hawk pilot bradley bowman flew this route along the potomac many times. what are the challenges? >> the area around reagan national airport is one of the busiest, if not the busiest in the nation. and you have these low-level helicopter routes, and it is all in a relatively tight space. >> reporter: it be fair to describe them as routine? >> yes. the day-to-day mission of this aviation unit is what we call priority air transport, to fly vips around, so if you are going to pick up the chief of staff of the army at the pentagon, right and fly him on a night mission you don't want the first time y

well, if you were to pan over south southwest, you would see fort belvoir.s one of the biggest military installations in an area that has a lot of military bases. as you well know, mika and joe and willie just on the other side of the potomac from reagan national airport. also, joint base anacostia-bolling, a large air base. and then, of course, just north of reagan airport, literally a stone's throw, we have the pentagon and fort myer, which is co-located with with arlington national cemetery. so there is a tremendous amount of air traffic in a very congested airspace. this aviation battalion is assigned to the joint task force, national capital region and the military district of washington. and why you guys may say, okay, why do those names sound familiar, where they have been very busy lately, the jtf, ncr, and the mdw, as they are frequently called, have been directly involved in the inauguration last week. they are the biggest military component support to that, and they are were directly involved in the funeral for jimmy carter earlier this month. so

fort belvoir, virginia, near mount vernon, which is not far from here.the helicopter was based. that has a helipad. the cia has a helipad near here. so a lot of military installations with helipads, a lot of small aircraft. choppers are always flying at low altitudes as planes come in from faraway locations to reagan national airport. so this is an area that is just heavily trafficked with a lot of aircraft at all times of the day and night. and unfortunately, this is you know, this is something that occurred as apparently this one military helicopter was on a training mission pretty late at night on wednesday night. >> omar and brian, you know, we've been showing images of the scene while you've been talking. but one thing we can't get a sense of just from looking at it is the weather, the conditions we've heard from officials that they have been cold in dark conditions. we know the water temperature has been in the 30s to this point, which obviously makes any survivability that much more difficult even in the immediate minutes after being exposed to th

says the helicopter was an army uh-60, commonly called a black hawk helicopter based out of fort belvoir three crewmembers aboard. a major search-and-rescue operation now under way in the potomac river. we turn to cbs' erica brown in washington for the very latest. >> reporter: the faa says preliminary information indicates that a regional jet collided in midair with a black hawk helicopter while on approach the reagan national airport wednesday night. video from earth cam appears to show the mid-air collision and a fiery crash. >> the accident happened in the river. both the helicopter and the plane crashed in the river. east of the approach of runway 33. >> reporter: a d.c. police official told cbs that police and fire department divers continue to search water for survivors. >> our fire department, d.c. fire and ems supported by fire departments and police departments from across the washington metropolitan region are executing a rescue operation in the potomac river. they are working diligently in very dark and cold conditions, cold water to execute this rescue operation. >> we notic

the black hawk helicopter took off from fort belvoir the pilots had night vision goggles on board butmay have confused them and caused them to look at the wrong plane. a lot of attention will now be paid to the elevation of the -- of the aircraft as well as communications with the reagan national airport's control chief there. bret, back to you. >> bret: jennifer griffin, thank you. >> we'll find out how this disaster occurred and we will ensure that nothing like this ever happens again. my administration will set the highest possible bar for aviation safety. >> there's a natural human response to start grasping for answers but right now it's so early. >> yeah. >> we have to let this investigation play out. >> bret: joining us now to discuss the air tragedy over washington and today's confirmation hearings as well, virginia senator tim kaine. senator, thanks for being here on a very tough day for the entire community of virginia, maryland, d.c., your thoughts 30,000 feet here about this tragedy? >> well, bret, it is just awful. you know, i was over at the airport about 6:30 this morni

knowledgeable about this, and he said that the training with this blackhawk, they came from fort belvoird to be called intelligence support activity, the i sa center, they are that sophisticated their peered we know the chopper pilots were experienced, 1,000 hours and 500 hours is a good number of hours. but it appears that the chopper went into the plane, and whether or not it is because there were too few people in the flight controlling towers and whether it had to do with one should have been talking to the plane, one should have been talking to the chopper, and they didn't have that, i don't know. i'm not in a position to take -- to make any criticism. but what i do know right now is it is going to take a long time to get the number of people we need into the faa and into these towers, but it's got to be done soon. it's got to be done quickly. and it's got to be done based upon competence. >> dana: and it is possible, jesse, that technology could help on this front, as well. >> jesse: and staffing. and i agree, it is just the sickest feeling all day long, having to cover this story.

♪ ] >> the unit involved -- the army unit involved is bravo company 12 aviation battalion at fort belvoirproficiency flight. we know who was involved. it was a fairly experienced crew and doing a required annual night evaluation. they did have night vision goggles. >> john: defense secretary pete hegseth updating on the midair crash this morning. adding earlier the crash may have been, quote, an elevation issue. let's bring in retired four star general jack keane, chairman for the institute of study of war and senior analyst for fox news. general, these training flights take part around d.c., and we see them regularly, and flying up the potomac river and the park police has a chopper up, and marine 1 training going on all of the time, how could something have gone so terribly wrong as it did last night? >> well, first of all, this type of training mission called continuity in government is what the pentagon released is a practice that takes place in the event there's a threat to our government or an attack has taken place, and by that i mean, like, 9/11. the continuity in government means

we know it came from fort belvoir, your thoughts about what we know. need to be there during that congested time? >> well, first of all, these mid-air collisions that take place, i mean they are the most frustrating accidents because you just know that that is preventable accident for sure. and one that takes place out an airport where a plane is on short final. you either have a procedural problem or human problem or both for something like that to happen. obviously, another airplane has no business flying into the landing path of an aircraft at an airfield. so that's obvious. listen, i have a lot of faith in the ntsb and the military accident investigation. i spent almost four decades involved with aviation accidents. and they do get to the bottom of this. and understand what happened. and the second thing that is very valuable. is they do make sound recommendations on how to mitigate this in the future. and obviously there is a lot of congestion at the d.c. airport. and the d.c. environment around that airport. but, so our audience understands, they

black hawk military run by the us army based out of fort belvoir. it had three crew on board. both of those aircraft are now in the water. they collided just as that aircraft was, just as the american airlines aircraft was going to land. it came in from wichita. it's american airlines, 5342. i'm going to ask our control room to put the phone number on the screen for american airlines. if you believe you knew someone who was landing around 8:51 p.m. this evening from wichita. american airlines lines are open right now. that's what we know at the moment. there is a search and rescue underway, dca, reagan national airport, as they call it now is closed, will reopen at 11 a.m. tomorrow. but you can see the emergency response. right now we have unconfirmed reports and because we have unconfirmed reports, i don't want to spread unconfirmed information. so until we get confirmed reports about what and who has been retrieved and where, people are all we know right now, we'll show you some images. i think. still pictures. in a moment we can see the aircraft, the fixed wing aircraft, th

so we don't know fully from what we now know now the military aircraft, a blackhawk from fort belvoir on a training mission, seemed to have flown, seems to have flown into american airlines 5342, which is operated by psa airlines. it's a crj 700 aircraft. it was coming in from wichita. it was seconds from landing on runway three three at dc's national airport. joining us again is joseph olmo. he's an nbc news four reporter. he's near the ronald reagan national airport. he's been covering this for the last few hours. joseph, just to be clear, the rescue operation, which they're still calling a rescue operation, which implies that they're looking for survivors, is still underway. we know that more than a dozen bodies have been recovered. the number may be more than that. we do not know of survivors as of yet. is that correct? >> we do not know. so i have to check my phone here. 222 eastern time. right now, about an hour, hour and a half ago, we got our first media briefing, our first press conference since this crash happened at 9:00 last night. and the mayor of washington, dc and sever

so the 12th combat aviation brigade, operating out of fort belvoir, operates here routinely daily, hourly. it's not unusual. >> mary, just in terms of the black boxes that have been found, what kind of information and how quickly will that information get get out. >> well, the black box, as i understand it, the first black box that was found was the flight data recorder. that will take a little longer than the cockpit voice recorder. the flight data recorder literally records dozens, if not hundreds of parameters, depending upon the age of the black box. everything from positioning of all control surfaces, um, various airspeeds engine, uh, settings, flap settings, you name it. if it's some kind of a setting or a position on the aircraft, the flight data recorder will have that and they download it and they have to analyze it. it is literally a computer printout. the cockpit voice recorder will contain obviously the information as to what the crew knew, what any sounds that they heard, if they had a chance to, you know, give any instructions to the passengers. and it's literally all the so

so we don't know fully from what we now know now the a military aircraft, a blackhawk from fort belvoir on a training mission seemed to have flown, seems to have flown into american airlines 5342, which is operated by psa airlines. it's a crj 700 aircraft. it was coming in from wichita. it was seconds from landing on runway three three at dc's national airport. joining us again is joseph olmo. he's an nbc news four reporter. he's near the ronald reagan national airport. he's been covering this for the last few hours. joseph, just to be clear, the rescue operation, which they're still calling a rescue operation, which implies that they're looking for survivors, is still underway. we know that more than a dozen bodies have been recovered. the number may be more than that. we do not know of survivors as of yet. is that correct? >> we do not know. so i have to check my phone here. 222 eastern time. right now, about an hour, hour and a half ago, we got our first media briefing, our first press conference since this crash happened at 9:00 last night. and the mayor of washington, dc and severa

so we don't know fully from what we now know now the a military aircraft, a blackhawk from fort belvoira training mission seemed to have flown, seems to have flown into american airlines 5342, which is operated by psa airlines. it's a crj 700 aircraft. it was coming in from wichita. it was seconds from landing on runway three three at dc's national airport. joining us again is joseph olmo. he's an nbc news four reporter. he's near the ronald reagan national airport. he's been covering this for the last few hours. joseph, just to be clear, the rescue operation, which they're still calling a rescue operation, which implies that they're looking for survivors, is still underway. we know that more than a dozen bodies have been recovered. the number may be more than that. we do not know of survivors as of yet. is that correct? >> we do not know. so i have to check my phone here. 222 eastern time. right now, about an hour, hour and a half ago, we got our first media briefing, our first press conference since this crash happened at 9:00 last night. and the mayor of washington, dc and several ot

and we also have fort belvoir, where this helicopter flew out of. there's joint base andrews, one of the biggest air bases around the area. so there's a tremendous amount of military air traffic and traffic around here. and that is one of the reasons that these evaluations, this training is, is so critical to the pilots being aware of the rules and the restrictions. and again, i know there's also been questions. >> about why. >> they were flying at night. that is a really important part of this training, being able to fly at night. and one of the reasons that military officials are so. anxious for the black box of the helicopter that the black hawk to be recovered is so that they. can get. >> some of the details. >> that really will be so critical and so key to this investigation, figuring out exactly how this really unfolded. >> yeah. i mean. >> in all those. >> places that are so near by dca, also, the building is right behind you is just literally almost a stone's throw from from dc to the pentagon. tom costello, courtney kube, john cox and ron b

in this area because they were assigned to the 12th aviation, 12th aviation battalion out of fort belvoir, assigned to the military district of washington. they have a very specific set of missions that includes flying vips around, but also having to respond in the case of some sort of an emergency in the national capital region. so people have been asking why would they be training or doing an evaluation so close to a major airport? we've just been listening for the last several minutes to what a congested airspace this is with just the commercial aviation. one of the reasons is they have to be able to fly. they need to be prepared to fly a real world mission by training in the same conditions, training at night, training near the airport. now the pilots and the chief on this aircraft, who we've just gotten the identities of two of them, katie, they were they have in one case, the instructor pilot had more than 1000 hours, the copilot about 500 hours. the chief was well aware of these routes and these corridors and the many, many restrictions that are associated with flying in this area.

the helicopter, the uh, 60, is based out of fort belvoir with the 12th aviation battalion, and they provide vip transport. luckily, no vip is on board this helicopter, but the three crew members, of course, i. you know, if you know this, this is obviously going to be a tragic loss. you know, based on what we what we can surmise right now. >> incredibly tragic. and cedric, forgive me for not fully understanding this. i've watched a lot of helicopters take off and land on the south lawn of the white house. as i've covered politicians throughout my time here in washington. is this the kind of helicopter that the president normally flies in? >> no, he flies in a different kind of helicopter. he flies in what's called marine one. that's actually a similar helicopter, but it's actually a different designation. and it has a different power plant associated with it. so it's a bigger aircraft, a bigger helicopter that the president uses. >> so this might look similar but smaller. >> much smaller. >> to the layman's. >> guide to the layman's eye look smaller. and the the thing is, these are the kind

army black hawk that was based out of fort belvoir, virginia. but it's still unclear where exactly it took off from before. of course, it was approaching near ronald reagan airport and ultimately collided with that passenger jet. we're also told that there were three crew members on board that black hawk at the time, three u.s. army soldiers. and while this was a seemingly a priority air transport, which is a call sign that is used sometimes when these blackhawks carry vips, for example, senior u.s. government officials, we are told that there were no senior u.s. government officials on board at the time. it was these three u.s. army soldiers. now, we're also told at this point that the army is conducting an investigation in conjunction with the ntsb, with the faa, and with the broader department of defense, secretary of defense pete hegseth. he also said in a tweet last night, absolutely tragic search and rescue efforts, still ongoing prayers for all impacted souls and their families. and he said that an investigation was launched immediately b

. >> from fort belvoir was. conducting a training. mission with three. >> soldiers aboard there. the aircraft. >> crashed into the potomac river. >> all 67 people. >> were killed as of last night. crews recovered. about 40 bodies from the river. search efforts are set to resume this morning. officials also discovered that the plane's cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder both. >> have been taken. >> to a lab for evaluation. the cause of the crash, though, has not yet been determined, but there are concerns over the level of staffing in the air traffic control room the night of the crash. typically, reagan national airport has one. controller for planes and another for helicopters, but a source with knowledge of the situation tells nbc news that on wednesday, there was only one controller handling both aircraft. while that's not ideal, it is acceptable under faa standards. >> new air traffic. >> control audio captured the moment leading up to the crash and the immediate reaction after. >> flight. antifa pathfinders d.o.j. >> crash crash crash. >> this is a learned three.

. >> of fort belvoir. they have. >> to be ready.s in this area, whether it is moving vips around, helping with any kind of an air restricted air. space mission, whatever it is, they need to know how and where they can fly, including right near national airport. and according to military officials, these three individuals on that aircraft. >> were familiar with how to do that. as i said, one of them was an. >> instructor pilot. >> meaning that. >> person not only. had the. >> the hours in the. >> cockpit. >> but would. >> help train other. >> pilots so that they. >> could be proficient. >> as well. >> ana. >> just sadly, there's just no room for error in this situation as we see as we look at the video of the crash. colonel, a lot of people are asking why the blackhawk didn't veer out of the way. now, we do know the crew members were wearing night vision goggles, colonel. could there have been a visibility issue? >> well, there's always visibility. >> problems at. >> night, even. >> with night vision goggles, which sort. >> of restri

. >> belvoir was conducting. >> a training. >> mission with three. >> soldiers aboard. >> the aircraft. >> crashed into the potomac river. both. all 67. >> people involved were. >> killed as of last night. >> crews recovered about. >> 40 bodies. from the potomac. >> search efforts. >> are. >> set to resume. >> this morning. officials also discovered the. >> plane's cockpit. >> voice recorder and. flight data recorder. >> both have been. >> taken to a lab for. evaluation by the ntsb. the cause of the crash has not yet been determined, but there are some concerns this morning of the level of staffing in the air traffic control tower the night of the crash. >> typically. >> reagan national airport has one controller for planes and another for helicopters, but a source. with knowledge of the situation tells nbc news on wednesday there was only one controller handling both aircraft. while that is not. >> ideal. >> it is acceptable under faa standards. new air traffic. >> control audio. >> captured the moment leading up to the crash and the immediate reaction afterward. >> d.o.j. flight. d.o

was an army u-60 helicopterro bravo company, 12 aviation battalion outf vison army airfield, fort belvoirwe will provide additional information want to becomes available." also from the washington post. you can see a picture here of the aircraft in the water. this is search and rescue crew here. searching for survivors. there have been bodies pulled out of the water. no survivors as of yet. we will take a call now from max in mechanicsville, maryland. good morning, max. caller: this is a terrible thing that happened. i wanted to give perspective. i drive over that bridge to and from virginia everyday. at least twice a day i drive over the bridge. aircraft flight over the bridge. something that has been very different is the amount of helicopters in the air in d.c. lately. hopefully somebody will figure out why. i'm not talking twice as many. on talking a marked increase of helicopter traffic. if you would normally see one or two or marine one, you have 5, 6, 7 helicopters in the air for the last few months. sometimes more than that. you see the lights from helicopters. it would be nice to

kansas, come into reagan national airport collided with a black hawk helicopter based out of fort belvoir. this recovery efforts continue, authorities confirmed that they do not expect any survivors. there are few words in instances like this only our heartfelt prayers for those who have received unbearable news over the past few hours and our gratitude for rescue personnel who spent the night searching for survivors and remain on the river. it's too early to know why last night crash occurred but we're going to find out. in congress and federal agencies will be closely examining this tragedy to ensure america's skies are safe. my prayers today are with all those suffering with our first responders, with arkansas senators and everyone affected by this terrible event. later today the senate will vote on former north dakota governor doug burgum to be secretary of the interior. governor burgum nose and america's natural resources are our greatest national asset. in the spirit of teddy roosevelt he believed energy can be a big stick to promote peace and prosperity that we have to be able to l

and that uh 60 black hawk helicopter from one of the squadrons at fort belvoir, davidson army airfieldrginia. so there was a lot to answer here. and the sad reality is the ntsb will not be able to answer all that much with a lot of granular clarity, because we are at such the early stages of this investigation much too soon to say, mind you, what has happened here. we know that there is a route for helicopters, a corridor used very frequently by government and military helicopters traveling north south, up and down the potomac river. that is what this helicopter was on at the time. i just spoke with a very experienced air traffic controller. he tells me that the airspace there at reagan national airport is so crowded, some of the most complex and busy a controller in the tower can easily get very saturated. he told me, because of having to deal not only with airliners coming in to take off and land by the minute, but then also helicopters transitioning the airspace there as they go up and down the potomac river. the big question, the aviation industry, the aviation industry is asking r

army was based out of fort belvoir in virginia, was engaged in and according to hegseth, according to national security advisor mike waltz, as well as another u.s. army official that we spoke to, this was not an inexperienced crew. this was a fairly experienced crew. there were no particularly junior pilots on board. but here's a little bit of what hegseth said in his recorded comments earlier. >> it was a fairly experienced crew, and that was doing a required annual night evaluation. they did have night vision goggles. uh, the 12th aviation battalion as of now is granted a 48 hour operational pause on contingency missions as what happened is reviewed and a senior level aviation team, an investigative team from our aviation safety center, was deployed last night. it already is in washington, d.c., to investigate what's going on so they are going to be looking at, according to hegseth, whether this helicopter was on the appropriate flight path, whether it was at the right altitude, basically whether anything went wrong here. >> but we should note that this is extremely routine. accordi

out of wichita coming into reagan collided with a black hawk helicopter blades -- based out of fort belvoir. recovery efforts continue but authorities confirmed they do not expect any survivors. mr. president, there are few words and instances like this, only our heart rep -- heartfelt prayers for those who have received unbearable news and who are gratitude for rescue personnel who spent the night searching for survivors and remain on the river. it is too early to know why the crash occurred. we will find out. congress and federal agencies will be closely examining the tragedy to ensure that america's skies are safe. my prayers today are with all those suffering, with the first responders and with our kansas senators and everyone affected by this terrible event. this morning our hearts go out to everyone impacted by the horrible, heartbreaking incident at reagan washington national airport last night. i've been briefed on the horrific incident at dca and have continued to monitor the situation. my heart goes out to everyone who was impacted by this incident. i'm praying for the victims, th