American Airlines Tragedy: Chilling Audio Details Moments Before, During, and After the Crash
American Airlines Plane Crash: Audio Reveals What Happened Before, During, and After
A collision that occurred in the air close to Reagan National Airport resulted in a large search and rescue effort that took place in the Potomac River, which was freezing. The horrifying minutes that occurred before, during, and after the disaster have been captured on audio that was just released by air traffic control.
This audio provides important insights into the fatal event.
Following the collision between a passenger plane operated by American Airlines and a Black Hawk helicopter operated by the United States Army in the air, a search and rescue effort was carried out in the vicinity of Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.
There were confirmed fatalities as a result of the incident, which caused the American Airlines aircraft to plunge into the icy Potomac River. However, as of the time of reporting, there were no survivors that had been retrieved.
During the time that first responders were working diligently at the crash site, the authorities decided to stop all operations at the airport until at least 11 a.m. Eastern Time on Thursday.
There were sixty passengers and four crew members on board American Airlines Flight 5342, which had taken off from Wichita, Kansas. PSA Airlines was the airline that was operating the flight.
At the time of the crash, the Black Hawk chopper was in the process of carrying out a training mission with three soldiers on board. Officials from the aviation and defense industries have stated that the plane was recovered in bits in the water, and the helicopter was discovered in the vicinity.
A stunning turn of events occurred when the audio from the air traffic control system captured the events that led up to the crash. This provided essential insight into the seconds that preceded the impact. An air traffic controller can be heard on the video asking the crew of the helicopter, “PAT 2-5, do you have the CRJ in sight?”
Following a few moments, the controller issued the following instruction: “PAT 2-5 pass behind the CRJ.” In the moments leading up to the crash, the pilot of the Black Hawk acknowledged that he had visual contact with the aircraft by announcing, “PAT 2-5 has aircraft in sight, request visual separation.”
After a period of less than thirteen seconds, the audio recording captured audible gasps coming from the tower, including a loud “oooh,” which indicated the time that the tower was struck. Immediately after the crash, air traffic controllers immediately informed another pilot of the growing calamity that was taking on.
I am not sure if you were aware of what had place earlier, but there was an accident on the approach end of the 3-3. In the event that you choose to return to the gate, we are going to make the decision to cease all operations for an indeterminate period of time. You should definitely cooperate with the company, as I strongly recommend. The controller said, “Please just let me know what it is that you want to do.”
The following statement was made by a different pilot who stated that they had witnessed the incident: “Yeah, we were on short final, and we saw flares from the opposite side of the Potomac.” It was also stated by an approach controller that “apparently both aircraft involved are in the river, and a search and rescue operation will be ongoing.”
As a result of the incident, there was a substantial amount of disturbance at Reagan National Airport, and planes were rerouted to other places.
Jack Potter, the CEO of the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, addressed the tragedy and mentioned that American Airlines had built a center within the airport to give help for friends and family of individuals who were aboard the aircraft.
“We’ve directed the families there, and there are counselors there to work with the families,” he explained to reporters. Due to the depth of the Potomac River and the state that it was in, rescue personnel had major difficulties when attempting to recover victims.
The United States Geological Survey (USGS) reports that the river has an average depth of 24 feet, with some sections reaching as deep as 107 feet near Morgantown, Maryland. Also, the river has a depth of approximately 24 feet. The recovery efforts are made even more difficult by the icy weather and the strong currents on the water.
A response to the tragedy was provided by President Donald Trump on his Truth Social platform, where he expressed his disapproval of the events that led up to the collision.
“The airplane was flying on a line of approach to the airport that was flawless and completely routine. “For a considerable amount of time, the helicopter was flying in a direction that was directly toward the airplane,” he wrote.
Given that it is a CLEAR NIGHT and that the lights on the plane were blazing, I am perplexed as to why the helicopter did not move up or down or turn. Instead of asking the helicopter if they noticed the plane, the control tower should have told the helicopter what to do when it was in the air. It appears that this unfortunate circumstance could have been avoided if it had been prevented. It was a conclusion that he reached.
An unfortunate reminder of other recent aircraft mishaps, such as the helicopter that crashed into a radio tower in Houston in October 2024, this airborne collision is a terrible reminder of those past disasters.
As search operations continue and investigators seek to piece together the final moments before impact, the recordings provide a horrifying view into how swiftly disaster can unfold. These recordings will be essential in discovering the cause of this catastrophic crash, which will be determined by investigating the tapes.
