All the major pieces of the wreckage of American Airlines Flight 5342 and the Black Hawk army helicopter that crashed over the Potomac River last week have been removed as of Thursday, according to military officials.
The Baltimore District of the Army Corps of Engineers, along with the Coast Guard and the U.S. Navy’s Supervisor of Salvage and Diving worked together to pull the components out of the river, according to a news release Thursday. The removal efforts began Monday, but the preparations for the recovery began just days after the crash.
The Unified Command handling the crash’s aftermath confirmed Wednesday that all 67 victims have been recovered and identified, the release said.
The wreckage is now en route to National Transportation Safety Board personnel, who will examine it as part of the board’s investigation. Salvage crews will now shift their focus to getting smaller pieces of debris out of the river before a planned end date of Feb. 16, according to the release.
“We will continue pushing forward in the coming days until we are confident the river is safe for navigation and that elements of evidentiary value are recovered and provided to the appropriate authorities,” said Commander Col. Francis Pera, of the Baltimore District of the Army Corps of Engineers, in the release.
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