Captain Jonathan Campos and First Officer Samuel Lilley were desperately trying to prevent disaster as their PSA Airlines aircraft raced toward a Black Hawk helicopter, data from the flight’s black box reveals.
On January 29 at 8:47 p.m. ET, a tragic mid-air collision occurred when Flight 5342, a jet owned by American Airlines, struck the Black Hawk helicopter carrying three US soldiers who were part of a training mission.
The plane, with 60 passengers and four crew members aboard, was en route from Wichita, Kansas, to Washington DC when it collided with the helicopter as it was approaching Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport for landing.
This disaster marked the deadliest plane crash in the US since 2001 and the first major aviation incident in the country in 16 years. Both the aircraft and the helicopter plunged into the Potomac River, and over 300 first responders rushed to the scene. Unfortunately, no one survived the crash.
According to information retrieved from the plane’s black box, both pilots made a final attempt to avert the crash. Todd Inman, an official with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), explained at a press conference on February 1, “At one point very close to the impact, there was a slight change in pitch, an increase in pitch.”
The safety board also mentioned that the preliminary data from the aircraft’s flight recorder didn’t match the control tower’s reading of the helicopter’s altitude at the time of the crash (via CNN).
According to the flight recorder, the helicopter’s altitude was around 325 feet at the moment of impact, whereas the control tower had recorded it at 200 feet.
Although investigations are still underway, if the crash did occur at 325 feet, it would suggest that the helicopter had surpassed the maximum allowed altitude for the area, which is 200 feet.
Iman further commented that while they don’t have data from the helicopter itself, “obviously an impact occurred, and I would say when an impact occurs, that is typically where the altitude of both aircraft were at the moment.”
Before the crash, Campos had spoken with his uncle over the phone.
In an interview with the MailOnline, his uncle, John Lane, shared that they had talked for about 10 minutes while Campos was boarding the plane, and he sounded “really happy.”
He said: “I can’t believe it. He sounded really happy. He was looking forward to going on a cruise next week on the Icon of the Seas, the cruise ship. Ten family members were going to fly to Florida to take the trip with him. It was going to be a big celebration.”
American Airlines released a statement regarding the incident: *”American Eagle Flight 5342, en route from Wichita, Kansas (ICT), to Washington, D.C. (DCA), was involved in an accident at DCA. The flight was operated by PSA Airlines using a CRJ-700. There were 60 passengers and four crew members aboard the aircraft. Our main concern is for the passengers and crew. We are in contact with authorities and assisting with emergency response efforts.
If you believe you may have loved ones on board Flight 5342, please call American Airlines toll-free at 800-679-8215. For those calling from outside the U.S., please visit news.aa.com for additional phone numbers. Family members in Canada, Puerto Rico, or the U.S. Virgin Islands can reach out directly at 800-679-8215.”*
