A commercial passenger plane bound for Reagan National Airport collided with a US Army Black Hawk helicopter over the Potomac River just outside of Washington, DC, on Wednesday. There were 64 people on board the aircraft and three people in the helicopter. No one is believed to have survived the collision, officials said Thursday, in what is likely the deadliest aviation disaster in the US since 2001. The investigation into the tragedy is ongoing.
Through maps, videos, photos and radio transmissions, CNN is piecing together what occurred during the deadly, midair collision. Here is a timeline of what we know so far, including new, exclusive videos obtained by CNN:
6:39 p.m. ET
American Airlines flight 5342, operated by PSA Airlines, takes off from Wichita Dwight D. Eisenhower National Airport bound for Washington, DC. It’s scheduled to land at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, DCA, just before 9 p.m. ET.
Sixty passengers and four crew members were aboard the aircraft, a Bombardier CRJ-700 regional jet manufactured in 2004.
Black Hawk on a training flight
A US Army UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter carrying three crew members – from the 12th Aviation Battalion, based out of nearby Fort Belvoir, Virginia – was traveling south over the Potomac River, just east of DCA on Wednesday evening. Its exact origin and takeoff time are unknown to CNN as of Thursday afternoon.
The Black Hawk helicopter was on an annual proficiency training flight, according to Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, who also confirmed the pilots were experienced and wearing night vision goggles.
Approximately 8:42 p.m. ET
As American Airlines flight 5342 approaches DCA, it contacts air traffic control about landing on Runway 1. Controllers ask the pilots to use Runway 33 instead. The pilots confirm the change and the aircraft is cleared to land.
AA Flight 5342: “Tower, Bluestreak 5342 on Mount Vernon visual, Runway 1”
Air Traffic Control: “Bluestreak 5342 Washington Tower [unintelligible] 320 at 17, gusts 25, Can you take Runway 33?”
Several other instructions are heard, and then:
AA Flight 5342: “Yeah, we can do 33 for Bluestreak 5342.”
Air Traffic Control: “Can confirm Runway 33, Runway 33 cleared to land …”
Approximately 8:47 p.m. ET
An air traffic controller contacts the Black Hawk helicopter, flying under the call sign PAT 2-5, to confirm it sees American Airlines flight 5342, which he refers to as a “CRJ,” based on the plane type CRJ-700.
Air Traffic Control: “PAT 2-5 do you have the CRJ in sight?”
Air Traffic Control: “PAT 2-5 pass behind the CRJ.”
Helicopter Pilot: “PAT 2-5 has aircraft in sight, request visual separation.”
Less than 13 seconds later, an air traffic control transmission captures controllers gasping as the aircraft collide, followed by instructions to reroute other aircraft away from the area. “Oh my,” is also heard from the control room.
Hear all that radio here:
Exclusive videos obtained by CNN show previously unseen angles of the collision between an American Airlines flight and a US Army Black Hawk helicopter over the Potomac River on Wednesday night. Editor’s Note: These videos contain sensitive material that may be hard to watch.
Approximately 8:48 p.m. ET
The air traffic control tower in DC alerts another pilot to what has taken place.
The other pilot can be heard saying, “Yeah, we were on short final, and we saw flares from the opposite side of the Potomac.”
Footage from a security camera at Reagan National airport shows the midair collision:
Discussions can be heard among air traffic controllers and other pilots about diverting to other airports, including Washington Dulles International Airport in nearby Loudoun County, Virginia.
An approach controller later says, “Apparently both aircraft involved are in the river, a search and rescue will be ongoing.”
Approximately 8:53 p.m. ET
“Crash, crash crash, this is an alert three,” a dispatcher says in audio obtained by CNN.
DC Police said it started receiving calls around 8:53 p.m. ET about “an aircraft crash above the Potomac River.”
Investigation ongoing
The National Transportation Safety Board, which is investigating the cause of the collision, will take about 30 days to release a preliminary report, and a final report, which will determine a probable cause, will take much longer, it said. Still, details about the collision’s circumstances and potential avenues for the investigation are emerging.
Flight tracking data from the moments before the fatal midair collision on Wednesday appear to show the Black Hawk helicopter flying above the maximum allowed altitude at times and veering off the prescribed route along the east side of the Potomac River.
One step already taken by the Trump administration and FAA is to restrict all helicopters from entering immediate airspace around DCA. Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy shared a map of the new restrictions on X on Friday.
CNN’s Pete Muntean, Oren Liebermann, Isaac Yee, Teele Rebane, Avery Schmitz, Sean O’Key, Alexandra Skores, Aaron Cooper, Natasha Bertrand, Brad Lendon, Justin Lear, Andy Rose, Lex Harvey and Rebekah Riess contributed to this report.
