Horrifying moment of Washington mid-air crash, as Trump claims helicopter was 'flying too high'
31 January 2025, 17:55
The moment of collision between the helicopter and the plane in the fatal Washington DC crash has been revealed in shocking new footage.
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The video shows the moment the Black Hawk military helicopter hits the American Airlines jet over the Potomac River in the US capital on Wednesday night, in the country's deadliest plane crash in over 20 years.
All 67 people involved in the crash died, and investigators are still trying to determine what caused the tragic collision.
Over 40 people have been recovered from the river so far, as recovery efforts continue in freezing conditions.
Donald Trump claimed on Wednesday that the helicopter was flying too high.
Newly released footage from multiple angles captures the moment American Airlines Flight 5342 collides with the Black Hawk helicopter, sending the plane into a dramatic barrel roll before plunging into the Potomac River. pic.twitter.com/yLPOM1RbND
— 🅽🅴🆁🅳🆈 (@Nerdy_Addict) January 31, 2025
His Secretary of Defence, Pete Hegseth, differed slightly from the president, saying that one of the aircraft was travelling at the incorrect altitude.
He said on Friday evening: "We are looking at altitude, and the president was clear about that, someone was at the wrong altitude.
"Was the Black Hawk too high? Was it on course? Right now we don’t quite know."
Mr Trump had said of the helicopter earlier on his social network Truth Social: "It was far above the 200 foot limit. That’s not really too complicated to understand, is it???"
Mr Hegseth also confirmed that three crew members were on board the helicopter.
"You had a captain in training. You had a chief warrant officer too as an instructor. And then you also had a staff sergeant in that Black Hawk as well."
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Mr Trump sparked fury by speculating on Thursday that the crash could have been caused by diversity hiring measures in air traffic control, reportedly implemented under previous Democrat administrations.
Mr Hegseth defended the president, saying: "‘The environment around which we choose pilots or air traffic controllers, as the president pointed out correctly yesterday, better be highest possible standard.
"The best of the best who are managing, you know … a flight a minute and managing radio traffic."
Meanwhile a report by the Federal Aviation Administration says staffing in the air traffic control tower was "not normal" at time of the mid-air collision near Washington.
World champion figure skaters and their coaches, a civil rights lawyer, students and their parents, and a soon-to-be-married pilot were among those who lost their lives in the tragic crash on Wednesday.
Other victims included a group of hunters, two Chinese citizens and a Filipino police officer.
