The 29 January midair collision involving a PSA Airlines MHIRJ CRJ700 appears to have happened when the regional jet was flying at less than 1,000ft over the Potomac River.
Data from flight-tracking website FlightAware.com shows the flight ending a few seconds before 20:48 local time when the aircraft was at 375ft altitude and not far from the threshold of Ronald Reagan Washington National airport’s runway 33.
The FAA confirms the CRJ700 and a Sikorsky H-60 helicopter collided as the passenger jet was make its approach to Reagan National.
FlightAware.com shows the flight’s track. The aircraft had been approaching Reagan National from the south. Shortly before the incident, it turned slightly northwest, aligning with runway 33.
The track, as shown on the website, disappears just after the jet crossed the east bank of the Potomac River. The point at which the track disappears is about 0.5 miles (0.80km) from the runway threshold.
Reagan National sits on the west bank of the river.
The aircraft, operating for American Airlines as flight 5342, departed Wichita Dwight D Eisenhower National airport at 17:22 central US time.
Local reports say a rescue effort is underway.
Flight data from ADS-B Exchange shows a US military flight operating with the call sign PAT25 in close vicinity to the PSA jet’s flight path over the Potomac. The aircraft was not broadcasting ADS-B data at the time of the incident, but its location and course were being estimated by ADS-B Exchange using multilateration or MLAT.
FlightRadar24 confimed the rotorcraft was not broadcasting ADS-B data in a post to X at 10:18 US Eastern time on 29 January.
While the aircraft model is not available, MLAT tracking data shows the vehicle was travelling at 71kt (131km/h) at an altitude of 200ft just before the estimated time of collision. .
The US Army has subsequently confirmed the incident rotrocraft was one of its UH-60M Black Hawks, assigned to nearby Fort Belvoir in Virginia, operating with three crew onboard.
