DC plane crash: 12 victims remain missing as crews begin removing wreckage from river
WASHINGTON - Most of the bodies of victims killed in the midair collision last week between a commercial jet and army helicopter have been recovered and identified, authorities confirmed Monday.
At a briefing with Unified Command, which is involved in the wreckage removal, authorities announced 55 sets of remains have been positively identified. In total, 67 people were killed last week when an American Airlines jet collided with an Army Black Hawk helicopter shortly before the jet was scheduled to land at Ronald Reagan National Airport.
The plane and helicopter crashed into the Potomac River.
"This is tragic. We have had peer support in place since the first hours of the incident to help that additional help and we will continue with that," Assistant D.C. Fire Chief Gary Steen said. "It is tragic. Everything imaginable you can think of, that is what they’re dealing with day in and day out and we’re going to provide support to them."
Monday timeline
Here's What Happened:
At the Unified Command briefing Monday, Col. Frank Pera described the day’s operations as successful. The first of two airplane engines were removed from the river around 10 a.m. Monday, followed by the fuselage by noon. Around 2:30 p.m. salvage operations began to bring a wing out of the water, Col. Pera said.
"Right now, we anticipate those items will end up on the barge like we talked about last night and stay overnight in secured and covered conditions so we can make our way to a transport point tomorrow morning," Pera said. "A lot of our operations tomorrow will be dictated by tidal conditions. The barge we’re using has a shallow draft."
Pera added, it appears the operations remain on schedule.
Conflicting altitude readings
As Unified Command begins its salvage operations, an investigation into how the jet and helicopter collided is underway. The investigation is being led by the NTSB.
Over the weekend, investigators said preliminary data showed conflicting readings about the altitudes of the airliner and helicopter when they collided.
What we know:
Investigators said that about a second before impact, the jet’s flight recorder showed a change in its pitch; however, they did not say whether that change in angle meant that pilots were trying to perform an evasive maneuver to avoid the crash.
Data from the jet’s flight recorder showed its altitude as 325 feet (99 meters), plus or minus 25 feet (7.6 meters), when the crash happened Wednesday night, National Transportation Safety Board officials told reporters. Data in the control tower, though, showed the Black Hawk helicopter at 200 feet (61 meters) at the time.
READ MORE: Conflicting altitude readings come out after deadliest U.S. air accident in a generation
The roughly 100-foot (30-meter) discrepancy has yet to be explained.
"It’s important to understand that DC radar picked up that it was 200 feet but that radar doesn’t update again for a full five seconds, so what we have done is pull additional data to get better, more granular information to understand that altitude," NTSB chair Jennifer Homendy said.
Col. Mark Ott, Deputy Director of the U.S. Army, was asked Monday what reason – if any – could army helicopters be flying above the 200 foot line?
"There are all kinds of reasons you could deviate from an altitude, something as simple as a flock of birds in front of you or you may deviate if you see something that’s an obstacle to your flight so I would wait until the NTSB investigation," Col. Ott said.
Aviation still "safest" mode of travel: NTSB
What they're saying:
Amid concerns about air travel given the deadly collision outside of DCA last week, which was followed by a deadly crash in Philadelphia on Monday, NTSB chair Jennifer Homendy reassured safety remains the top priority in aviation.
"What I can say, is the NTSB investigates every civil aviation accident in the United States. It is the safest mode of travel. Getting in your car every single day, that is the most dangerous mode of transportation where we’re losing over 40,000 people annually and millions of people injured. Air travel is incredibly safe," she said Monday.
NTSB is expected to hold a press briefing Tuesday. A scheduled time has not been announced yet.
The Source: FOX 5 reporting, National Transportation Safety Board