passengers and the traveling public that our safety is our absolute number one priority. >> and kris van kris, what are pilots telling you about that these two planes -- aircraft, rather, were so close in the first place and everybody is wondering how safe are the skies? >> reporter: yeah, so fundamentally, even if that helicopter had been at 200 feet, they were too close together. you want at least a thousand feet of separation there. so what led up to the circumstances, what is the chain of events that put those two aircraft so close together? it won't just be that the helicopter was flying at 325 feet. there will be other factors that led us down the road to disaster here. how safe is the aviation system? it's as safe as it was before this crash. there are layers of safety built in that are still in effect today, the same way they were two weeks ago. >> kris van cleave in washington. thank you, kris. >> looking at the calendar, we are halfway now through winter. >> looking at the dictionary, winter comes from the old germanic word meaning "time of water." so, lonnie quinn, are we in a

cbs' kris van cleave has the latest on the investigation. >> reporter: crews began lifting pieces of the american airlines regional jet that crashed into the potomac river after the midair collision. among them the midsection of the plane'smaled and upside down fuselage, one of the plane's engines, and a wing as efforts continue to recover all 67 crash victims. >> we have psitively identified 55 sets of remains. during recovery and salvage operations today, additional human remains were located. >> reporter: ntsb investigators have accessed the plane's cockpit data recorder, which shows the airliner was flying at about 325 feet around the time of the collision. deputy director of army aviation, colonel mike ott. is there any reason why army helicopters would be flying above that 200-foot line, as it appears in this case? >> it's important for us to not speculate because there are -- there are all kinds of reasons that you could deviate from an altitude. you know, something as simple as a flock of birds is in front of you, or you may deviate if you see something that's an obstacle or

senior transportation correspondent kris van cleave is at reagan airport with the latest on the investigation. kris? >> reporter: maurice, the move to restrict helicopters drew praise from american airlines ceo and several key senators. those recorders that have been recovered, those are crucial pieces of this investigation. they contain a treasure trove of data, and the ntsb believes they are in good enough condition to yield that information. crews have recovered at least 41 bodies from the wreckage of the american airlines regional jet and army black hawk helicopter sitting in the potomac. they are waiting for additional equipment to pull pieces of fuselage from the river in the hopes of reaching the unaccounted for. video captured the moment the chopper slammed into the side of flight 5342 as it was on final approach to washington's reagan national airport. it appears the helicopter was flying nearly 200 feet higher than it should have been at the time of the crash. >> as a pilot, you never stop flying. he didn't give up all the way to the ground, or all the way to the water. he would hav

cbs' kris van cleave has more on the search for clues. >> reporter: crews began lifting pieces of theairlines regional jet that crashed into the potomac river after wednesday's mid-air collision. among them, the midsection of the plane's mangled and upside down fuselage. one of the plane's engines and a wing, as efforts to continue to recover all 67 crash victims. >> we are positively identified 55 sets of remains. during recovery and salvage operations today, additional human remains were located. >> reporter: ntsb investigators have accessed the plane's cockpit data recorder which shows the airline was flying about 325 feet around the time of the collision. deputy director of army aviation colonel mark ott. is there any reason why army helicopters would be flying above that 200--foot line as it appears in this case? >> it's important for us to not speculate because there are all kinds of reasons that you could deviate from an altitude. you know, if as simple as a flock of birds is in front of you, or you may deviate if you see something that's an obstacle. the pilots to climb. what'

here is kris van cleave. >> reporter: it came down like a missile.home to mexico when something went wrong right after takeoff. two pilots, two doctors, and a family member were also onboard. at least one person on the ground was killed. >> it came out of the clouds going in a straight nosedive, and the second it dame through the clouds was another second before hit the ground. >> reporter: the learjet 55 crashed into a busy section of the city, destroying cars and setting buildings ablaze. a horrifying end to the deadliest week in american aviation in decades. >> just scary to think maybe flying isn't the best thing to do right now. >> reporter: rattling an already shaken nation looking for answers in the wake of wednesday's midair collision. an army black hawk helicopter colliding with an american airlines regional jet over the icy potomac river in the nation's capital. 67 people died, just feet from the runway. it appears to have happened about 325 feet up, high ter than the helicopter was supposed to be. investigators say they are working to unde