Authorities have recovered and identified 55 of the 67 people killed in the crash and Washington, D. Crews were expected to begin the work of lifting the wreckage on Monday and at daybreak, they could be seen aboard a vessel with a crane.
More than responders were taking part in the recovery effort at any a given time, officials said. Two Navy barges were also deployed to lift heavy wreckage. Divers and salvage workers are adhering to strict protocols and will stop moving debris if a body is found, Col. Francis B. Pera of the Army Corps of Engineers said Sunday. Portions of the two aircraft that collided over the river Wednesday night near Reagan Washington National Airport — an American Airlines jet with 64 people aboard and an Army Black Hawk helicopter with 3 aboard — will be loaded onto flatbed trucks and taken to a hangar for investigation.
The crash occurred when the jet, en route from Wichita, Kansas, was about to land. The Black Hawk was on a training mission. There were no survivors. On Sunday, family members were taken in buses with a police escort to the Potomac River bank near where the two aircraft came to rest after colliding.
Figure Skating Championships in Wichita and a group of hunters returning from a guided trip. Army Staff Sgt. Rebecca M. Lobach, of Durham, North Carolina, were in the helicopter. Federal investigators were working to piece together the events that led to the collision. Full investigations typically take a year or more. Investigators hope to have a preliminary report within 30 days. Experts stress that plane travel is overwhelmingly safe, but the crowded airspace around Reagan Airport can challenge even experienced pilots.
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