WASHINGTON (AP) —Divers have returned to the Potomac River as part of the recovery and investigation after the United States’ deadliest aviation disaster in almost a quarter century.
The collision between an American Airlines passenger jet and an Army helicopter at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport near Washington, D.C, late Wednesday killed 67 people, including more than a dozen figure skaters. More than 40 bodies have been recovered.
Here's the latest:
A riverkeeper who routinely patrols the for the environmental group Potomac Riverkeeper Network got permission Thursday to take his motorboat to the Woodrow Wilson Memorial Bridge, about two miles (3.2 kilometers) down from the crash site.
Dean Naujoks said he found that floating debris from the passenger plane had been pushed by the wind and current into a pair of shallow coves along the Maryland shore.
Naujoks recovered a piece of the interior wall from the passenger cabin that had surrounded a window, pages from a flight manual, a woman’s sweater and what appeared to be the cushion from a pilot’s seat. He turned over the items to the FBI.
“Everything is covered in jet fuel,” Naujoks said. “I’m thinking of the people these things belonged to and it’s a punch to the gut. It’s just a sad day on the river.”
FAA indefinitely closes routes near DC-area airport to most helicopter traffic
The Federal Aviation Administration is significantly restricting helicopter traffic in the immediate vicinity of Washington Reagan National Airport.
That is according to an official briefed on the matter.
Wednesday’s collision between and Army Black Hawk helicopter and a commercial jet killed 67 people.
Some of the airspace has already been restricted due to ongoing search and recovery efforts over the crash site, but now agency responsible for air traffic control is indefinitely barring most helicopters from using the low-to-the-ground routes that run under or parallel to the airport’s flightpaths.
The official spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the matter.
Official tells the AP that more than 40 bodies recovered
More than 40 bodies have been pulled from the Potomac River as a massive recovery effort continues following the deadliest aviation disaster in a generation, a law enforcement official told Associated Press.
The recovery efforts were continuing on Friday.
The official was not authorized to discuss details of the investigation and spoke on condition of anonymity.