Aerial Footage Shows Wreckage From Washington Plane Crash

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has released footage showing investigators surveying the wreckage of two aircraft that collided in Washington, DC, over a week ago. The January 29 incident involving a US Army Black Hawk helicopter and an American Airlines regional jet killed all 67 people aboard.

The footage, taken a day after the crash, shows the two aircraft submerged in the icy waters of the Potomac River, near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. The American Airlines flight, en route from Wichita, Kansas, had 64 people on board, while the helicopter carried three soldiers.

Recovery operations have since concluded, with the remains of all 67 victims retrieved from the river. Of these, 66 have been positively identified. Crews continue to clear large pieces of wreckage, including parts of the jet, from the river. Recently recovered items include sections of the plane's wings, fuselage, forward cabin, and cockpit.

The NTSB provided details on the investigation, revealing the Black Hawk helicopter was recorded at 300 feet altitude at the time of the collision, exceeding the location's limit of 200 feet. Investigators plan to recover the helicopter later this week to verify this data. The NTSB is also transcribing the cockpit voice recorders and synchronising data from both aircraft's flight recorders as part of the ongoing investigation.

A report has revealed that the air traffic control tower at Washington's Reagan National Airport was understaffed at the time of the deadly crash. The Federal Aviation Administration's internal safety report said that the staffing was insufficient for the volume of traffic during the crash, with one controller handling both helicopters and planes landing and departing - a task typically assigned to two controllers.

Last week, two employees of the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA) were arrested for allegedly leaking footage of the crash to CNN. The leaked videos offer a closer view of the crash, showing the collision between the two aircraft over the Potomac River. The footage was recorded by cell phones.

The MWAA staffers involved, Mohamed Lamine Mbengue, 21, and Jonathan Savoy, 45, have been charged with computer trespassing. Mbengue was briefly detained, while Savoy was issued a summons and released.