Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport has been closed until at least 11 a.m. Thursday. Several flights out of Florida have already been canceled.
Following the tragic aircraft collision that killed more than 60 people near Washington, D.C., WPTV News dug into federal data to see how often planes crash while in the air or have close calls.
The captain flying the plane with 64 aboard was schooled in Florida. A Blackhawk helicopter collided with Flight 5342 near Ronald Reagan airport.
ARLINGTON, Va. (AP) — At least 28 bodies were pulled from the icy waters of the Potomac River after an American Airlines jet carrying 60 passengers and four crew members collided with an Army helicopter while landing at Ronald Reagan National Airport near Washington, officials said Thursday.
Three flights from RSW into Washington D.C.'s DCA have been canceled Thursday after an American Airlines passenger plane collided with an Army helicopter Wednesday night.
An American Airlines regional jet collided with a military helicopter as it was approaching Reagan National Airport.
"I walk here every day. I see helicopters going around. I see planes coming in like crazy. I never thought that would happen."
Daniel Izzo, a retired Navy SEAL master chief, has conducted water rescues after plane crashes and says winter conditions in the Potomac River make the situation even more dangerous. "It always seems like something like this happens at the worst possible time," Izzo said. "It happened at night. It happened in January."
The American Airlines’ subsidiary has ties that go back decades in Ohio, and just said it was moving its headquarters to Charlotte.
Wednesday night’s crash of an American Airlines commuter plane in Washington could be one of the worst disasters for the Fort Worth-based airline in more than two decades.
The plane collided with a military helicopter over the Potomac, killing 67 people. The four-member plane crew was based in Charlotte.