US: passenger plane hits a military chopper in Washington

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MONITORING (SW) – A major search and rescue operation is under way after a passenger plane with 64 people on board collided with a helicopter carrying three US Army personnel over Washington DC and crashed into a river.

The PSA Airlines Bombardier CRJ700 regional jet arriving in the city from Wichita, Kansas, collided with a Sikorsky H-60 Black Hawk helicopter in midair just before 9pm (US Eastern Time).

The plane was on approach to the runway at Reagan Airport at the time. The airline told CNN that 60 people and four crew had been on board at the time of the crash.

The US Army Black Hawk helicopter had a crew of three and was not carrying any VIPs, according to a US defence official.

Senior Army officials often use Black Hawks for travel in the Washington, DC, area.

DC Police said the plane crashed in the near-freezing waters of the Potomac River. “A multi-agency search and rescue operation is underway in the Potomac River after aircraft crash,” police said.

The FAA, the Federal Aviation Agency said that the jet collided with the helicopter in mid-air. “A PSA Airlines Bombardier CRJ700 regional jet collided in midair with a Sikorsky H-60 helicopter while on approach to

Runway 33 at Reagan Washington National Airport around 9 p.m. local time,” the FAA said in a statement. “PSA was operating Flight 5342 for American Airlines. It departed from Wichita, Kansas.”

Fireboats are on the scene to assist with the search and rescue.

ENDS

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