ARLINGTON, Va. (AP) — Police boats combed the banks of the Potomac River on Friday, slowly scanning the shoreline in the rain as investigators sought clues into the midair collision that killed 67 people and raised questions about air traffic safety around the nation’s capital.
The black box from the Army Black Hawk helicopter that collided with a commercial jetliner and crashed into the Potomac River has been recovered, investigators announced. They are reviewing that flight data recorder along with two recovered earlier from the jet.
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A member of a dive team and a Coast Guard vessel with a crane are pictured as they work near the wreckage of a Black Hawk helicopter in the Potomac River from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
CORRECTS YEAR - National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigators examine cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder recovered from the American Airlines passenger jet that crashed with an Army helicopter Wednesday night near Washington, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025. (NTSB via AP)
CORRECTS YEAR - National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigators examine cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder recovered from the American Airlines passenger jet that crashed with an Army helicopter Wednesday night near Washington, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025. (NTSB via AP)
CORRECTS YEAR - National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigators examine cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder recovered from the American Airlines passenger jet that crashed with an Army helicopter Wednesday night near Washington, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025. (NTSB via AP)
Emergency vehicles and recovery operations are seen near the mouth of the Anacostia River at the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
An American Airlines plane prepares to land at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport as crosses are seen in a makeshift memorial for the victims of the plane crash in the Potomac River Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
Terry Liercke, vice president and airport manager of Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, speaks during a news conference at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
A cross is seen at a makeshift memorial for the victims of the plane crash in the Potomac River Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
FILE - The air traffic control tower at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport is seen, June 2, 2021, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane, File)
D.C. Fire and EMS Chief John Donnelly speaks during a news conference at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Terry Liercke, vice president and airport manager of Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, speaks during a news conference at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
D.C. Fire and EMS Chief John Donnelly speaks during a news conference at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
In this image provided by the U.S. Coast Guard, wreckage is seen in the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Washington. (Petty Officer 2nd Class Taylor Bacon, U.S. Coast Guard via AP)
Emergency vehicles and recovery operations are seen near the mouth of the Anacostia River at the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
Emergency vehicles and recovery operations are seen near the mouth of the Anacostia River at the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
National Transportation Safety Board member Todd Inman speaks with reporters at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
National Transportation Safety Board Chair Jennifer Homendy speaks during a press conference at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Arlington, Va., as board members look on. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
In this image provided by the U.S. Coast Guard, Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem discusses response efforts with Capt. Patrick Burkett, commander, Coast Guard Sector Maryland - National Capital Region, outside Coast Guard Station Washington D.C., Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025 in Washington. (Petty Officer 1st Class Brandon Giles, U.S. Coast Guard via AP)
In this image provided by the U.S. Coast Guard, wreckage is seen in the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025 in Washington. (Petty Officer 1st Class Brandon Giles, U.S. Coast Guard via AP)
Search efforts are seen around a wreckage site of a deadly midair collision between an American Airlines jet and an Army helicopter, in the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Arlington, Va., as an American Airlines jet lifts off from the airport. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Emergency vehicles are seen across the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
Emergency vehicles are seen across the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
Emergency vehicles are seen across the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
Emergency vehicles are seen across the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
In this image provided by the U.S. Coast Guard, wreckage is seen in the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025 in Washington. (Petty Officer 1st Class Brandon Giles, U.S. Coast Guard via AP)
National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigators examine cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder recovered from the American Airlines passenger jet that crashed with an Army helicopter Wednesday night near Washington, D.C, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2024. (NTSB via AP)
In this image provided by the U.S. Coast Guard, wreckage is seen in the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025 in Washington. (Petty Officer 2nd Class Taylor Bacon, U.S. Coast Guard via AP)
In this image provided by the U.S. Coast Guard, wreckage is seen in the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025 in Washington. (Petty Officer 2nd Class Taylor Bacon, U.S. Coast Guard via AP)
A rose rests near the names of figure skating coaches Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov on a commemorative wall Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, at the Skating Club of Boston in Norwood, Mass. The two former world champions who were coaching at the historic Boston club were among the members of the skating community killed when an American Airlines flight collided with an Army helicopter Wednesday, Jan. 29, and crashed into the Potomac River. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)
National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigators examine cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder recovered from the American Airlines passenger jet that crashed with an Army helicopter Wednesday night near Washington, D.C, Thursday, Jan.30, 2024. (NTSB via AP)
Search efforts are seen around a wreckage site of a deadly midair collision between an American Airlines jet and an Army helicopter, in the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
In this image provided by the U.S. Coast Guard, wreckage is seen in the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025 in Washington. (Petty Officer 2nd Class Taylor Bacon, U.S. Coast Guard via AP)
Search efforts are seen around a wreckage site of a deadly midair collision between an American Airlines jet and an Army helicopter, in the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Arlington, Va., as an American Airlines jet lifts off from the airport, foreground. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
In this image provided by the U.S. Coast Guard, wreckage is seen in the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025 in Washington. (Petty Officer 2nd Class Taylor Bacon, U.S. Coast Guard via AP)
Search efforts are seen around a wreckage site of a deadly midair collision between an American Airlines jet and an Army helicopter, in the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Arlington, Va., as an American Airlines jet lifts off from the airport. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigators examine cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder recovered from the American Airlines passenger jet that crashed with an Army helicopter Wednesday night near Washington, D.C, Thursday, Jan.30, 2024. (NTSB via AP)
National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigators prepare to examine cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder recovered from the American Airlines passenger jet that crashed with an Army helicopter Wednesday night near Washington, D.C, Thursday, Jan.30, 2024. (NTSB via AP)
Search and rescue efforts are seen around a wreckage site in the Potomac River from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, early Thursday morning, Jan. 30, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigators examine cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder recovered from the American Airlines passenger jet that crashed with an Army helicopter Wednesday night near Washington, D.C, Thursday, Jan.30, 2024. (NTSB via AP)
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, with District of Columbia Mayor Muriel Bowser, left, and other officials, speaks during a news conference at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Thursday morning, Jan. 30, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
A helicopter uses a spotlight on the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
A boat works the scene near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Carla Lee, a retired Wichita State University nursing professor, holds a vase of red roses to show her support for the families of victims of a deadly collision between a passenger airliner and an Army helicopter that occurred the day prior, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, after a prayer vigil in Wichita, Kan., where the airline passenger flight originated. (AP Photo/John Hanna)
Wichita mayor Lily Wu hugs Pastor Albert Paredes during a prayer vigil in Wichita, Kan., on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, for those affected by the crash of American Airlines flight 5342 near Washington the day before. (AP Photo/Travis Heying)
Former Olympic skater Nancy Kerrigan, right, is embraced while arriving at The Skating Club of Boston with fellow Olympic skater Tenley Albright, left, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Norwood, Mass. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Passengers head for the gates for departing flights at Eisenhower National Airport in Wichita, Kan., the starting point for a passenger airliner involved in a deadly collision with an Army helicopter in Washington the day prior, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025. (AP Photo/John Hanna)
Former Olympic skater Nancy Kerrigan pauses while addressing the media at The Skating Club of Boston, The Skating Club of Boston, where six members of the club's community, including athletes, coaches and family, were killed in an airplane collision with a helicopter on Wednesday in Washington, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Norwood, Mass. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
A donated vase of red roses honors victims of the deadly collision between a passenger airliner and an Army helicopter that occurred the day prior, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, at the Law Enforcement Memorial in Wichita, Kan., where the airline passenger flight originated. (AP Photo/John Hanna)
Search and rescue efforts are seen around a wreckage site in the Potomac River from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, early Thursday morning, Jan. 30, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
Search and rescue efforts are seen around a wreckage site in the Potomac River from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, early Thursday morning, Jan. 30, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
Search and rescue efforts are seen around a wreckage site in the Potomac River from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, early Thursday morning, Jan. 30, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
Pastor Bob Becker takes part in a prayer vigil in Wichita, Kan., on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, for those affected by the crash of American Airlines flight 5342 near Washington the day before. (AP Photo/Travis Heying)
President Donald Trump speaks in the James Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
A police boat is seen around a wreckage site in the Potomac River from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
In this photo provided by the U.S. Coast Guard, response boat crews from Coast Guard stations Washington, Curtis Bay, Annapolis, Oxford and Crisfield enforce a safety zone around a wreckage site in the Potomac River from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Washington. (Petty Officer 2nd Class Taylor Bacon/U.S. Coast Guard via AP)
Search and rescue efforts are seen around a wreckage site in the Potomac River from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, early Thursday morning, Jan. 30, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
In this image provided by the U.S. Coast Guard, wreckage is seen in the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025 in Washington. (Petty Officer 2nd Class Taylor Bacon, U.S. Coast Guard via AP)
Search and rescue efforts are seen around a wreckage site in the Potomac River from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, early Thursday morning, Jan. 30, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
In this image provided by the U.S. Coast Guard, wreckage is seen in the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025 in Washington. (Petty Officer 2nd Class Taylor Bacon, U.S. Coast Guard via AP)
A diving team and police boat is seen around a wreckage site in the Potomac River from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
In this image provided by the U.S. Coast Guard, wreckage is seen in the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025 in Washington. (Petty Officer 2nd Class Taylor Bacon, U.S. Coast Guard via AP)
No one survived the Wednesday night collision. The remains of 41 people had been pulled from the river as of Friday afternoon, including 28 that had been positively identified, Washington, D.C., Fire Chief John Donnelly Sr. said at a news conference. He said next of kin notifications had been made to 18 families, and he expects all the remains to be recovered.
The wreckage of the plane's fuselage will probably have to be pulled from the water to get all the bodies, he said.
“This is heartbreaking work,” Donnelly said, noting that more than 300 responders were taking part in the effort at any one time, including teams of divers and two U.S. Coast Guard cutters, at least one of which carries a crane. “It’s been a tough response for a lot of our people.”
It was unclear how long the recovery operation would take.
“We’re working as fast as we can,” Donnelly said. “We need your patience.”
The American Airlines jet was carrying 60 passengers and four crew members. The helicopter had three soldiers on board.
Although Ronald Reagan National Airport reopened, two of its three runways remained closed to keep aircraft from flying over the crash scene, said Terry Liercke, the airport's vice president and manager. Roughly 100 flights were canceled Friday.
The Federal Aviation Administration also heavily restricted helicopter traffic around the airport, the Department of Transportation said in a statement, hours after President Donald Trump claimed in a social media post that the Army Black Hawk had been flying higher than allowed.
Investigators have recovered the cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder of the American Airlines jetliner, which collided with the chopper as the plane was coming in for a landing at the airport, which is just across the Potomac from Washington.
The flight data recorder was in good condition and its information was expected to be downloaded shortly, National Transportation Safety Board member Todd Inman told reporters. He said water entered the cockpit voice recorder, and while that’s not unusual, it adds to investigators’ work.
The helicopter’s data, contained in a single black box, was at NTSB headquarters and appears to be undamanged, Inman said.
Investigators are examining the actions of the military pilot as well as air traffic control, after the helicopter apparently flew into the jet's path. NTSB investigations normally take at least a year, though investigators hope to have a preliminary report within 30 days.
Military aircraft frequently conduct such flights in and around the capital to practice routes they would fly if key government officials had to be quickly moved during a major catastrophe or attack.
Other potential factors in the crash, including the helicopter’s altitude and whether the crew was using night vision goggles, are still under investigation, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told Fox News Channel.
On Friday the Army released the names of two of the soldiers who died: Staff Sgt. Ryan Austin O’Hara, 28, of Lilburn, Georgia, the crew chief; and Chief Warrant Officer 2 Andrew Loyd Eaves, 39, of Great Mills, Maryland. Eaves was one of the pilots on the helicopter.
But in an unusual move, the name of the third soldier is not being released for now at the family’s request, the Army said.
The FAA on Friday barred helicopters from flying over a roughly 6-mile (10-kilometer) stretch of the Potomac and parts of its shoreline, including over the airport, according to the Department of Transportation statement. The new limits exempt helicopters on emergency medical flights, active law enforcement and air defense missions, and carrying the president. They are expected to remain in place at least until the NTSB finishes its preliminary report.
Officials said flight conditions were clear as the jet arrived from Wichita, Kansas, carrying, among others, nine students and parents from Fairfax County, Virginia schools, a group of elite young figure skaters, their parents and coaches and a group of hunters.
Crash debris has drifted miles (kilometers) downriver.
Dean Naujoks, who routinely patrols the Potomac for the environmental group Waterkeeper Alliance, found floating debris Thursday in a pair of shallow coves along the Maryland shore.
The wreckage included pages from a flight manual, part of the plane’s cabin wall, a woman’s sweater and dozens of sugar packets with the American Airlines logo. Naujoks, who had law enforcement permission to take his motorboat about 2 miles (roughly 3 kilometers) from the crash site, turned the items over to the FBI.
“Everything is covered in jet fuel,” Naujoks said Friday. “The sugar packets made me think of the flight attendants. I’m thinking of the people these things belonged to, and it’s a punch to the gut. It’s just a sad day on the river.”
According to an FAA report obtained by the AP, one air traffic controller was responsible for coordinating helicopter traffic and arriving and departing planes when the collision happened. Those duties are often divided between two people, but the airport typically combines them at 9:30 p.m., once traffic begins to slow down. On Wednesday, though, the tower supervisor combined them earlier, which the report called “not normal.”
However, a person familiar with the matter said tower staffing that night was actually normal. The positions are regularly combined when controllers need to step away for breaks, shift changes or when traffic slows, the person said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal procedures.
Inman said investigators had interviewed at least one air traffic controller working at the time of the crash. He said interviews were ongoing, and it was unclear how many controllers were working at the time.
“Air traffic control interviews are critical,” Inman said. “That’s the reason why there’s a process in place that began immediately after the accident.”
Investigators will also examine staffing levels, training, hiring and other factors, in addition to looking at controllers' records.
The FAA has long struggled with a shortage of air traffic controllers.
Jonathan Koziol, chief of staff for Army aviation, said the helicopter crew was “very experienced” and familiar with the congested flying that occurs daily around the city.
The helicopter's maximum allowed altitude at the time was 200 feet (about 60 meters), Koziol said. It was not immediately clear whether it exceeded that limit, but Hegseth said altitude seemed to be a factor in the collision.
A day after he questioned the helicopter pilot’s actions and blamed diversity initiatives for undermining air safety, Trump said Friday that the helicopter was “flying too high.”
“It was far above the 200 foot limit. That’s not really too complicated to understand, is it???” Trump said in a post on the Truth Social platform.
Wednesday's crash was the deadliest in the U.S. since Nov. 12, 2001, when a jet slammed into a residential area of Belle Harbor, New York, just after takeoff from Kennedy Airport, killing all 260 people aboard and five people on the ground.
Experts often highlight that plane travel is overwhelmingly safe, but the crowded airspace around Reagan National can challenge even the most experienced pilots.
Gomez Licon reported from Miami. Associated press writers Lolita C. Baldor, Tara Copp, Meg Kinnard, Chris Megerian, Aamer Madhani and Michael Biesecker in Washington; Lea Skene; and Sarah Brumfield in Cockeysville, Maryland, contributed.
This story was updated to correct the spelling of Jennifer Homendy's name, which had been misspelled Hommendy.
A member of a dive team and a Coast Guard vessel with a crane are pictured as they work near the wreckage of a Black Hawk helicopter in the Potomac River from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
CORRECTS YEAR - National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigators examine cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder recovered from the American Airlines passenger jet that crashed with an Army helicopter Wednesday night near Washington, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025. (NTSB via AP)
CORRECTS YEAR - National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigators examine cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder recovered from the American Airlines passenger jet that crashed with an Army helicopter Wednesday night near Washington, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025. (NTSB via AP)
CORRECTS YEAR - National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigators examine cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder recovered from the American Airlines passenger jet that crashed with an Army helicopter Wednesday night near Washington, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025. (NTSB via AP)
Emergency vehicles and recovery operations are seen near the mouth of the Anacostia River at the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
An American Airlines plane prepares to land at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport as crosses are seen in a makeshift memorial for the victims of the plane crash in the Potomac River Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
Terry Liercke, vice president and airport manager of Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, speaks during a news conference at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
A cross is seen at a makeshift memorial for the victims of the plane crash in the Potomac River Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
FILE - The air traffic control tower at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport is seen, June 2, 2021, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane, File)
D.C. Fire and EMS Chief John Donnelly speaks during a news conference at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Terry Liercke, vice president and airport manager of Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, speaks during a news conference at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
D.C. Fire and EMS Chief John Donnelly speaks during a news conference at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
In this image provided by the U.S. Coast Guard, wreckage is seen in the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Washington. (Petty Officer 2nd Class Taylor Bacon, U.S. Coast Guard via AP)
Emergency vehicles and recovery operations are seen near the mouth of the Anacostia River at the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
Emergency vehicles and recovery operations are seen near the mouth of the Anacostia River at the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
National Transportation Safety Board member Todd Inman speaks with reporters at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
National Transportation Safety Board Chair Jennifer Homendy speaks during a press conference at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Arlington, Va., as board members look on. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
In this image provided by the U.S. Coast Guard, Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem discusses response efforts with Capt. Patrick Burkett, commander, Coast Guard Sector Maryland - National Capital Region, outside Coast Guard Station Washington D.C., Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025 in Washington. (Petty Officer 1st Class Brandon Giles, U.S. Coast Guard via AP)
In this image provided by the U.S. Coast Guard, wreckage is seen in the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025 in Washington. (Petty Officer 1st Class Brandon Giles, U.S. Coast Guard via AP)
Search efforts are seen around a wreckage site of a deadly midair collision between an American Airlines jet and an Army helicopter, in the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Arlington, Va., as an American Airlines jet lifts off from the airport. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Emergency vehicles are seen across the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
Emergency vehicles are seen across the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
Emergency vehicles are seen across the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
Emergency vehicles are seen across the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
In this image provided by the U.S. Coast Guard, wreckage is seen in the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025 in Washington. (Petty Officer 1st Class Brandon Giles, U.S. Coast Guard via AP)
National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigators examine cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder recovered from the American Airlines passenger jet that crashed with an Army helicopter Wednesday night near Washington, D.C, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2024. (NTSB via AP)
In this image provided by the U.S. Coast Guard, wreckage is seen in the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025 in Washington. (Petty Officer 2nd Class Taylor Bacon, U.S. Coast Guard via AP)
In this image provided by the U.S. Coast Guard, wreckage is seen in the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025 in Washington. (Petty Officer 2nd Class Taylor Bacon, U.S. Coast Guard via AP)
A rose rests near the names of figure skating coaches Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov on a commemorative wall Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, at the Skating Club of Boston in Norwood, Mass. The two former world champions who were coaching at the historic Boston club were among the members of the skating community killed when an American Airlines flight collided with an Army helicopter Wednesday, Jan. 29, and crashed into the Potomac River. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)
National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigators examine cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder recovered from the American Airlines passenger jet that crashed with an Army helicopter Wednesday night near Washington, D.C, Thursday, Jan.30, 2024. (NTSB via AP)
Search efforts are seen around a wreckage site of a deadly midair collision between an American Airlines jet and an Army helicopter, in the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
In this image provided by the U.S. Coast Guard, wreckage is seen in the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025 in Washington. (Petty Officer 2nd Class Taylor Bacon, U.S. Coast Guard via AP)
Search efforts are seen around a wreckage site of a deadly midair collision between an American Airlines jet and an Army helicopter, in the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Arlington, Va., as an American Airlines jet lifts off from the airport, foreground. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
In this image provided by the U.S. Coast Guard, wreckage is seen in the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025 in Washington. (Petty Officer 2nd Class Taylor Bacon, U.S. Coast Guard via AP)
Search efforts are seen around a wreckage site of a deadly midair collision between an American Airlines jet and an Army helicopter, in the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, in Arlington, Va., as an American Airlines jet lifts off from the airport. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigators examine cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder recovered from the American Airlines passenger jet that crashed with an Army helicopter Wednesday night near Washington, D.C, Thursday, Jan.30, 2024. (NTSB via AP)
National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigators prepare to examine cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder recovered from the American Airlines passenger jet that crashed with an Army helicopter Wednesday night near Washington, D.C, Thursday, Jan.30, 2024. (NTSB via AP)
Search and rescue efforts are seen around a wreckage site in the Potomac River from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, early Thursday morning, Jan. 30, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigators examine cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder recovered from the American Airlines passenger jet that crashed with an Army helicopter Wednesday night near Washington, D.C, Thursday, Jan.30, 2024. (NTSB via AP)
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, with District of Columbia Mayor Muriel Bowser, left, and other officials, speaks during a news conference at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Thursday morning, Jan. 30, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
A helicopter uses a spotlight on the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
A boat works the scene near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Carla Lee, a retired Wichita State University nursing professor, holds a vase of red roses to show her support for the families of victims of a deadly collision between a passenger airliner and an Army helicopter that occurred the day prior, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, after a prayer vigil in Wichita, Kan., where the airline passenger flight originated. (AP Photo/John Hanna)
Wichita mayor Lily Wu hugs Pastor Albert Paredes during a prayer vigil in Wichita, Kan., on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, for those affected by the crash of American Airlines flight 5342 near Washington the day before. (AP Photo/Travis Heying)
Former Olympic skater Nancy Kerrigan, right, is embraced while arriving at The Skating Club of Boston with fellow Olympic skater Tenley Albright, left, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Norwood, Mass. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Passengers head for the gates for departing flights at Eisenhower National Airport in Wichita, Kan., the starting point for a passenger airliner involved in a deadly collision with an Army helicopter in Washington the day prior, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025. (AP Photo/John Hanna)
Former Olympic skater Nancy Kerrigan pauses while addressing the media at The Skating Club of Boston, The Skating Club of Boston, where six members of the club's community, including athletes, coaches and family, were killed in an airplane collision with a helicopter on Wednesday in Washington, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Norwood, Mass. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
A donated vase of red roses honors victims of the deadly collision between a passenger airliner and an Army helicopter that occurred the day prior, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, at the Law Enforcement Memorial in Wichita, Kan., where the airline passenger flight originated. (AP Photo/John Hanna)
Search and rescue efforts are seen around a wreckage site in the Potomac River from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, early Thursday morning, Jan. 30, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
Search and rescue efforts are seen around a wreckage site in the Potomac River from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, early Thursday morning, Jan. 30, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
Search and rescue efforts are seen around a wreckage site in the Potomac River from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, early Thursday morning, Jan. 30, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
Pastor Bob Becker takes part in a prayer vigil in Wichita, Kan., on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, for those affected by the crash of American Airlines flight 5342 near Washington the day before. (AP Photo/Travis Heying)
President Donald Trump speaks in the James Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
A police boat is seen around a wreckage site in the Potomac River from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
In this photo provided by the U.S. Coast Guard, response boat crews from Coast Guard stations Washington, Curtis Bay, Annapolis, Oxford and Crisfield enforce a safety zone around a wreckage site in the Potomac River from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Washington. (Petty Officer 2nd Class Taylor Bacon/U.S. Coast Guard via AP)
Search and rescue efforts are seen around a wreckage site in the Potomac River from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, early Thursday morning, Jan. 30, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
In this image provided by the U.S. Coast Guard, wreckage is seen in the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025 in Washington. (Petty Officer 2nd Class Taylor Bacon, U.S. Coast Guard via AP)
Search and rescue efforts are seen around a wreckage site in the Potomac River from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, early Thursday morning, Jan. 30, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
In this image provided by the U.S. Coast Guard, wreckage is seen in the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025 in Washington. (Petty Officer 2nd Class Taylor Bacon, U.S. Coast Guard via AP)
A diving team and police boat is seen around a wreckage site in the Potomac River from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
In this image provided by the U.S. Coast Guard, wreckage is seen in the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025 in Washington. (Petty Officer 2nd Class Taylor Bacon, U.S. Coast Guard via AP)
