A passenger aircraft collided in mid-air with a Sikorsky H-60 military helicopter while approaching the runway at Reagan National Airport near Washington, CNN reported on Thursday.
"The Bombardier CRJ700 was operating flight 5342 for American Airlines. It had departed from Wichita, Kansas, earlier on Wednesday. The 'Black Hawk' helicopter from the U.S. Army was in a training flight at the time of the incident," said Heather Chaires, spokesperson for the Joint Tactical Operations Group in the National Capital Region, according to CNN.
Media outlets, citing Washington police, report that 18 bodies of the deceased have already been recovered from the Potomac River, where the passenger plane that collided with the military helicopter fell.
According to American media, there were 64 passengers and crew members on board the aircraft, while the Black Hawk helicopter carried three military personnel, none of whom were senior command officials.