Families of DC plane crash victims write letter to Army demanding accountability, transparency
Families of DC plane crash victims demand accountability from Army
The families of the victims of D.C.'s deadly plane crash are demanding accountability from the U.S. Army. This week, dozens of loved ones signed an open letter to the Secretary of the Army, Daniel Driscoll, asking for transparency.
WASHINGTON - The families of the victims of D.C.'s deadly plane crash are demanding accountability from the U.S. Army.
Sixty-seven lives were lost on Jan. 29 when a Black Hawk helicopter crashed midair into an American Airlines flight near Reagan National Airport.
This week, dozens of loved ones signed an open letter to the Secretary of the Army, Daniel Driscoll, asking for transparency.
What we know:
Families of Flight 5342 say they have worked with the Department of Transportation, the NTSB, the FAA and American Airlines all to figure out a way to make flying safer after this tragic loss.
Now, they want the same collaboration from the U.S. Army.
"This was the worst civilian disaster and loss of life involving the military in United States in modern history and that's what's different here," said Amy Hunter, cousin of Peter Livingston, who died in the crash alongside his wife Donna and their two young daughters, Everly and Alydia.
What they're saying:
In the letter, families of Flight 5342 write to Sec. Driscoll, "While this incident did not occur under your watch, your leadership in this moment could help restore public confidence in military aviation safety protocols and set a precedent for how the armed forces respond to U.S. civilian casualties."
The letter goes on to demand immediate action items like appointing a dedicated family liaison to go between the Army and families of Flight 5342, being more transparent and sharing updates about the Army's internal investigation along with concrete steps to make sure nothing like this ever happens again.
They also want public support of the inspector general audits requested by congress as Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has done with the FAA.
"You know, we can't bring our loved ones back but we can insist their deaths lead to change," said Rachel Feres, another cousin of Peter Livingston. "And I think the Army has a choice - they can retreat into silence or they can lead with courage and we're asking them to lead with courage."
"We have love for our military, we have faith in our military and we believe that this will work out in the long run and we believe change will happen - it's just a heavy lift right now," Hunter said.
What's next:
The families also want a meeting scheduled within the next 30 days to discuss these requests.
You can read the full letter here, signed by 168 family members:
FOX 5 has reached out to the Army for a response - but has not heard back yet.
In a statement, Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine said, "The crash near DCA was horrific, and the Army, FAA, and Congress need to work together to make changes to ensure a tragedy like this one doesn’t happen again. This includes improving air traffic controller hiring and training, reviewing flight operations in the National Capital Region, and removing slots at DCA to address the congested airspace."