Authorities have actually recovered 41 bodies after an aircraft crash in Washington DC.

Sixty-seven individuals were eliminated when an American Airlines jet and a military helicopter clashed mid-air on Wednesday night. So far, 28 bodies have been determined.

Both airplane crashed into the Potomac River after the accident. Some 300 personnel were sent out to the scene, however the rescue soon turned into a recovery objective as authorities stated there were no survivors.

Washington crash: Follow the most recent updates

Federal investigators have actually recovered the black boxes from the traveler jet, while authorities were still looking for similar devices in the helicopter.

Meanwhile, amid concerns over how well the airport's control tower was staffed on the night of the crash, it's been verified that an air traffic control service supervisor had actually let a controller leave their shift early.

The detail, first reported by the New york city Times, has actually been confirmed to Sky News' US partner NBC News by a source acquainted with the examination.

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It suggests a single controller was managing both airplane and helicopter traffic in the location when the two aircraft clashed.

It is allowable - however not optimum - for one controller to do both jobs, NBC News reported.

The American Airlines jet was bring 60 guests and 4 crew when it crashed with the Black Hawk helicopter, bring three soldiers, shortly before 9pm regional time on Wednesday.

Flight 5342 was preparing to land on runway 33 at the Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport when it hit the helicopter in among the most tightly controlled airspaces in the world.

'Em ergency vehicles sped past me'

A male whose other half was on the flight has recalled how he saw emergency services "speeding past" as he was waiting at the airport to select her up.

Hamaad Raza told NBC News his other half of 2 years, Asra, had actually "texted me [and] stated, 'We're landing in 20 minutes'".

" I was waiting and I began seeing a bunch of EMS cars speeding past me ... way too lots of, [more] than normal and my texts weren't going through."

Trump makes unverified variety drive claim

Donald Trump has actually connected a diversity drive at the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) under previous governments to the crash.

It has considering that been said there is no proof to support the US president's claim.

Speaking at the White House on Thursday, Mr Trump recommended the variety efforts had made air travel less safe.

At a White House press briefing on Friday, press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Mr Trump had signed a memorandum directing an instant assessment of FAA hiring decisions made during the previous administration.

While Mr Trump's claim appears to have actually been unmasked, there are questions over staffing at Reagan Washington National Airport.

NBC News reported staffing in the air traffic control tower was "not normal", according to an initial FAA report.

The tower typically has a controller who focuses particularly on helicopter traffic - however at the time of the crash, a source said, one controller was overseeing both airplane and helicopter activity.

The FAA, which manages air traffic control in addition to certification of personnel and aircraft, lacks a permanent administrator. Its former boss Michael Whitaker stepped down on 20 January - the day of Mr Trump's inauguration.

Follow Trump 100 on your podcast app Mr Trump has actually selected an acting administrator, Chris Rocheleau, in the wake of the crash.

Mr Whitaker had clashed with Mr Trump's confidante Elon Musk over the SpaceX rocket launches during his tenure at the FAA.

Since starting as head of the administration in October 2023, employment he was likewise forced to react to Boeing's security and quality issues, and worked to hire more air traffic controllers due to a lack of personnel.

Read more:.
Washington DC plane crash: What we understand up until now.
Air traffic control heard diverting airplanes moments after collision

At his briefing, Mr Trump blamed former president Joe Biden for reducing standards for air traffic controllers.

" We have to have our smartest individuals," he said. "They have to be naturally gifted geniuses."

Mr Trump included: "The FAA is actively hiring employees who suffer severe intellectual impairments, psychiatric problems, and other psychological and physical conditions under a diversity and addition hiring effort spelled out on the firm's site."

The American Association of People with Disabilities reacted to these claims, saying in a declaration on X: "FAA workers with impairments did not trigger [the] terrible plane crash.

" The examination into the crash is still ongoing. It is incredibly inappropriate for the president to utilize this disaster to press an anti-diversity hiring agenda. Doing so makes all Americans less safe."

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Mr Trump stated after being sworn in recently, he signed an executive order which "brought back the highest requirements of air traffic controllers".

At a later rundown, he was asked if gender or race contributed. He addressed: "It might have, I do not know.