[Photo: Andrew Harnik/Getty Images]
On January 29th, 2025, around 9 p.m. American Eagle Flight 5342 was travelling from the Wichita Dwight D. Eisenhower Airport in Wichita, Kansas to Ronald Reagan National Airport in Virginia. American Eagle Flight 5342 and a U.S. Army Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter collided into each other on the final descent into Reagan Airport. The aircrafts crashed into Potomac River, the 4th largest river along the East Coast of the United States. The helicopter was on a training flight, the crew was based at Ft. Belvoir in Virginia. There were 67 tragedies, 60 passengers from the American Eagle Flight, 4 crew members and 3 members on the Black Hawk helicopter.
American Eagle is a brand of smaller airlines that fly under American Airlines, American Airlines does not operate the flights itself. However, a few regional airlines, such as PSA Airlines, Envoy Air, and Piedmont Airlines operate their flights under the American Eagle Name. American Eagle Flight 5342 was operated by PSA Airlines. The Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk is a utility helicopter used by the U.S. Army, it serves as the Army’s primary front-line helicopter, it is commonly used by the Active Army, Army Reserve, and National Guard.
A report on the collision said that the air traffic control tower staffing at Ronald Regan National Airport was “not normal” for the time of day and the amount of air traffic there was. President Trump said the crash may have happened because of incompetence; he used this comment as an opportunity to discuss DEI, he was asked if gender and race played a role in the collision and he said, “It may have. I don’t know.” When asked how he concluded that diversity played a role in the crash, President Trump said, “Because I have common sense, okay?”
A former helicopter pilot, Reed M. Kimbrough said that is too early to make any final conclusions about how the crash occurred but night vision goggles in the helicopter could have played a role. He said that the helicopter seemed to be flying too high, the helicopter was supposed to be flying at 200 feet but was reported to be flying between 300 to 350 feet. “There’s a lag in vision as the night vision goggles recalibrate from looking inside at the instruments to back outside,” he said. This makes objects seem further away than they are.
All bodies have not been recovered yet, and all victims have not been publicly identified. There are several names that have been released. Grace Maxwell, 20, was returning to college after attending her grandfather’s funeral. Some others who have been named were Kiah Duggins, 30, a Howard University professor. Former world champion figure skaters Vadim Naumov and Evgenia Shishkova. Disney on Ice Little Mermaid actress, Inna Volyanska and the pilot Sam Riley. President Trump was asked if he would visit the site of the crash and he said, “I have no plan to visit the site… You want me to go swimming?”
