• A midair collision occurred between an American Airlines jet with 64 people onboard and a U.S. Army chopper carrying three soldiers on Jan. 29 in Washington, D.C.
• Among the fatalities in the crash include 14 U.S. figure skaters, according to Doug Zeghibe, CEO of The Skating Club of Boston
• The black box recording devices have not yet been recovered from the accident scene, said the NTSB, which did offer specifics on what caused the crash

Authorities continue to search for bodies and determine what led to the Wednesday, Jan. 29, midair collision between an American Airlines jet and a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter over the Potomac River in the Washington, D.C. area.

Washington, D.C. Fire and EMS Chief John A. Donnelly said at a press conference on Thursday, Jan. 30, that 27 bodies were recovered so far from the jet and one from the chopper.  No survivors from the incident were expected.

“The District Office of the Medical Examiner has lead on reuniting these bodies and these people with their loved ones and we will continue to work to find all the bodies and collect them and reunite them with their loved ones,” he said.

As authorities continue to piece together what happened in what has become the third deadliest commercial aviation disaster in the U.S. since 2001, here is what we know at this current moment.

What Happened?

On Wednesday, Jan. 29, an American Airlines regional passenger plane flying from Wichita, Kan., and carrying 64 people collided with a helicopter near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Washington, D.C.

The FAA said in a statement that the incident involved a PSA Airlines Bombardier CRJ700 regional jet and a Sikorsky H-60 helicopter. CNN reported that it was an Army Black Hawk helicopter, citing two U.S. defense officials. The New York Times also reported it was an Army Black Hawk helicopter, citing an Army official.

The midair collision happened as the jet approached Runway 33 around 9 p.m. local time.

“PSA was operating as Flight 5342 for American Airlines. It departed from Wichita, Kansas. The FAA and NTSB will investigate. The NTSB will lead the investigation,” the statement said.

In a statement, American Airlines said the plane carried 60 passengers and four crew members onboard.

The Black Hawk helicopter had three soldiers onboard, CNN reported. “We can confirm that the aircraft involved in tonight’s incident was an Army UH-60 helicopter out of Fort Belvoir, Virginia. We are working with local officials and will provide additional information once it becomes available,” a U.S. Army official told the outlet at the time.

In remarks to the press on Jan. 30, American Airlines CEO Robert Isom said that, based on what is known at the early stage, American Eagle Flight 5342, a CRJ 700 operated by PSA Airlines, he said, “was involved in an accident” on its “final approach into Reagan National.”

The jet “collided with a military aircraft on an otherwise normal approach,” Isom said, adding, “And at this time, we don’t know why the military aircraft came into the path of the PSA aircraft flight 5342.”

The American Airlines jet reportedly split in two when it landed in the frigid water, according NBC Washington reported.

The Army Black Hawk helicopter was reportedly upside down in the Potomac, posing a challenge for rescuers to access it, sources told the same outlet.

Ari Schulman, a D.C.-based reporter who was driving home to Alexandria, Va., witnessed the collision. “I couldn’t make sense of what I saw because it didn’t seem like they were coming directly out of the plane,” said Schulman, reported The Washington Post. “They were underneath its belly and separated a little distance.”

Are There Any Survivors?

At a morning press conference on Thursday, Jan. 30, officials announced that there were no survivors expected from the collision, which involved 64 people aboard the plane and three soldiers in the helicopter.

“Despite all those efforts [by responders], we are now at a point where we are switching from a rescue operation to a recovery operation, “ Washington, D.C. Fire and EMS Chief Donnelly said at the Jan. 30 press conference. “At this point, we don’t believe there are any survivors from this accident.”

President Donald Trump addressed the tragedy at a White House news conference on the same day and also said there were no survivors.

“This is really shaking a lot of people, including people very sadly, from other nations, who are on the flight for the family members back in Wichita, Kansas, here in Washington, D.C, and throughout the United States and in Russia, we have a Russia contingent, some very talented people. Unfortunately, were on that plane,” he said, CNN reported.

He also added that his administration will provide support to those affected by the incident.

“We are one family, and today we are all heartbroken,” Trump said. “We’re all searching for answers that icy, icy Potomac, or is it cold, cold night, cold water. We’re all overcome with the grief of many who have so tragically perished and will no longer be with us together. We take solace in the knowledge that their journey ended not in the cold waters of the Potomac, but in the warm embrace of a loving God.”

In a post shared on X, former President Joe Biden offered condolences in the aftermath of the disaster, writing: “Jill and I are praying for the families of the victims who tragically lost their lives in the plane and helicopter crash near DCA. We are immensely grateful to the brave first responders and emergency personnel on the scene.”

What Do We Know About Some of the Victims?

Among the fatalities in the crash include 14 U.S. figure skaters, according to Doug Zeghibe, CEO of The Skating Club of Boston

The victims from The Skating Club of Boston were identified as two teens, Spencer Lane and Jinna Han; their mothers, Molly Lane and Jin Han; and two coaches, Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov, the 1994 World Pairs Champions.

“They’re here at our facility in Norwood six, sometimes seven days a week. It’s a close, tight bond,” Zeghibe said tearfully at the press conference. “So I think for all of us, we have lost family.”

Inna Volyanskaya, 59, a former pair skater who competed for the Soviet Union, was also on the plane, Reuters reported, citing Russian news agency TASS. According to the Washington Figure Skating Club‘s website, Volyanskaya served as a coach for the team.

Pairs figure skating world champions Evgenia Shishkova, 52, and Vadim Naumov, 55, who won the title in 1994, were also among those onboard the jet, according to Russian news agencies TASS and RIA, reported Reuters and The Guardian.

Sisters Everly and Alydia Livingston were also among those killed in the crash. The two were part of the U.S. figure skating contingent traveling back from competition and training in Kansas. According to the figure skating news outlet Golden Skate, the siblings were members of the Washington Figure Skating Club.

The U.S. Figure Skating team earlier shared a statement with PEOPLE on Jan. 30, writing, “U.S. Figure Skating can confirm that several members of our skating community were sadly aboard American Airlines Flight 5342, which collided with a helicopter yesterday evening in Washington, D.C.”

“These athletes, coaches and family members were returning home from the National Development Camp held in conjunction with the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Wichita, Kansas,” the statement added.

“We are devastated by this unspeakable tragedy and hold the victims’ families closely in our hearts. We will continue to monitor the situation and will release more information as it becomes available,” the group said.

The United Association of Journeymen and Apprentices of the Plumbing and Pipefitting Industry, a union, shared in an X post on Jan. 30 that four of its members — none of whom have been publicly identified — were aboard the American Airlines jet at the time of the collision.

“We are heartbroken to confirm that four members of UA Steamfitters Local 602 were among the victims of the American Airlines Flight 5342 crash yesterday,” said the United Association’s statement.

“Our focus now is on providing support and care to the families of our Brothers as we continue to gather more information in the coming days….These members will be forever in our hearts, and may God bless them and their loved ones. May they forever rest in peace,” the statement continued.

What Do We Know About the Ongoing Recovery Efforts

As of Jan. 30, officials said 28 bodies were recovered: 27 from the plane and one from the helicopter.

At an early Jan. 30 news conference, Washington, D.C. Fire and EMS Chief Donnelly said that 300 first responders took part in what was initially a search-and-rescue operation, noting that the conditions were difficult.

“The water that we’re operating in is about 8 feet deep,”  said Donnelly, KERA News reported. “There is wind. There are pieces of ice out there. So it’s just dangerous and hard to work in. And because there’s not a lot of lights, you’re out there searching every square inch of space to see if you can find anybody. Divers are doing the same thing in the water. The water is dark. It is murky. And that is a very tough condition for them to dive in.”

On social media, Maryland Governor Wes Moore shared his state’s response to the situation on Jan. 29, writing: “The Maryland Department of Emergency Management- MDEM has raised its Emergency Operations Center to ‘Enhanced’ status in support. Maryland State Police have deployed divers to the scene to assist with rescue missions. Maryland Department of Natural Resources police are also on scene.”

The NTSB said at a Jan. 30 afternoon press conference that the black box recording devices from the accident site have not yet been recovered and remain underwater, but they hope they will be retrieved to provide additional information on what happened in those final moments.

What Went Wrong?

Authorities said the investigation into the cause of the deadly crash, which has not been specified, is still in its early stages.

At his White House news conference, President Trump said it is uncertain what happened that led to the midair collision and that the military and NTSB are investigating, the Associated Press reported.

But Trump also claimed — without proof — that the air traffic controllers, the helicopter pilots and Democratic policies at federal agencies were to blame for what happened, adding,  “We’ll find out how this disaster occurred and will ensure that nothing like this ever happens again.”

He also alleged that the government’s diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) policies and the mental health of employees contributed to the incident.

In a statement shared on social media on Jan. 30, U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy wrote: “What happened today should never have happened. I want the families of the victims to know that they have my word: I will not rest until you have the truth.”

“I will find answers to how this happened. I have directed every relevant agency to immediately investigate what went wrong, and I will not tolerate delays or bureaucratic excuses. If there was negligence, incompetence, or failure anywhere in the system, we will find it—and I will fix it.

“I will provide further updates as we uncover the facts,” he concluded.

Duffy also remarked at a Jan. 30 news conference that the disaster could have been “absolutely” preventable, the New York Post reported.

“To back up what the president said, from what I’ve seen so far, do I think this was preventable? Absolutely,” Duffy said.

He also noted that there was no miscommunication between the American Airlines pilots and the operators of the Army chopper before the collision.

“It was, I would say, standard communication, so there was not a breakdown, if that’s your question, in communication between the military helicopter and the American airline flight. There was communication between the aircraft and the tower,” the transportation secretary said.

During an afternoon press conference on Jan. 30, officials from the NTSB, who arrived at the scene of the accident the evening prior, did not offer specifics on the cause of the crash but outlined what steps will being taken during the probe.

“We are going to leave no stone unturned in this investigation. We are going to conduct a thorough investigation of this entire tragedy looking at the facts,” NTSB chairwoman Jennifer Homendy said.

J. Todd Inman, an NTSB member, said that investigators are going through the debris fields, adding: “Nothing we’ve seen would indicate that maybe [the plane’s] slides or chutes were deployed. It was a very quick, rapid impact. We’ve seen nothing in that regard so far from the evidence we have, but we still need to verify all of  that information.”

The NTSB also said all that info about names and numbers of the deceased will be coming out from the D.C. medical examiner’s office.