The father of Sam Lilley, a pilot killed in the Washington, D.C., crash involving an American Airlines jet and a U.S. Army helicopter, says his son was a devout Christian, declaring he is “right with Jesus.” The father said he's taking solace in his son’s Christian faith while mourning the tragic loss. The day after Wednesday night’s fatal collision near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Tim Lilley told News Nation he drew comfort from his son’s Christian faith. He referred to First Officer Lilley as someone who was “right with...

Investigators are searching for answers after a Wednesday evening midair collision over Washington, D.C., left 67 people dead. The crash took place at around 8:48 p.m. near Reagan Washington National Airport, just south of the city, when a small passenger plane making its final approach to the airport collided with an Army helicopter. The graphics below illustrate what we know so far about the crash. They will be updated as more information is made available. The collision involved American Eagle Flight 5342, a small plane carrying 60 passengers and four...

This is not the first time a plane has crashed into the Potomac River. An American Airlines regional jet collided with a military helicopter near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Virginia on Wednesday night before both aircraft plummeted into the Potomac River. Sixty-four people were on the plane, which departed from Wichita, Kansas. Three Army soldiers were aboard the helicopter, which was on a training flight at the time, officials said. No survivors are expected. The incident recalls a similar tragedy that took place 43 years ago. On Jan....

The tragic accident caused by a midair collision between a regional commercial airliner and a military helicopter in Washington, D.C., is the first fatal commercial air accident in nearly 15 years. On Wednesday night, an American Airlines plane carrying 60 passengers and four crew members collided with an Army Black Hawk helicopter with three crew members aboard while on approach to land at Reagan National Airport near Washington, D.C. Both aircraft crashed into the Potomac River, and emergency response officials have said they "don't think there are any survivors from...

US airlines had gone 16 years without a fatal crash until Wednesday night. But as impressive as that safety record had been, there have been warning signs in recent years of a significant risk of a collision like the one that just killed 67 people. A regional jet from Wichita, Kansas, operated as an American Airlines flight by feeder carrier PSA Airlines, was preparing to land at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport when it collided with a US Army Blackhawk helicopter that was crossing its path just a few hundred...

The collision of an American Airlines flight and a U.S. military helicopter above Washington D.C. last night appears to be the deadliest aviation accident in the county since November 2001. All 64 people aboard the American Airlines flight from Wichita, Kansas, to Washington, D.C. are feared dead, as are three soldiers on board the helicopter. Among the passengers were 14 figure skaters, six of whom were from the Boston area. Jinna Han and her mother Jin Han of Mansfield, Spencer Lane and his mother Christine Lane from Barrington, Rhode Island,...

Multiple fatalities have been reported after an American Airlines passenger jet collided midair with a military Black Hawk helicopter while approaching Raegan Washington National Airport on Wednesday night, Jan. 29, 2025. The crash occurred around 9 p.m. before search and rescue efforts began in the nearby Potomac River for the 60 passengers and four crew members from the plane and three soldiers from the helicopter.