U.S. military and aviation officials are investigating the mid-air collision of a Sikorsky helicopter with a passenger airplane in Washington, D.C.
A U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter collided with American Eagle Flight 5342 on final approach to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport over the Potomac River in Washington, D.C. The American Airlines flight was coming from Wichita, Kansas.
Todd Inman, a National Transportation Safety Board member, told reporters during a Thursday afternoon press conference that helicopters have defined tracks in the airspace of Washington, D.C.
Inman and other NTSB officials did not provide any early theories on what caused the aerial collision, stating NTSB working groups would focus on flight crews and any factors that could have impacted flight decisions; the helicopter engines and other onboard systems, such as hydraulics and communications between air-traffic controllers and the two aircraft.
“We do not know enough facts to be able to rule in or out human factor [or] mechanical factors in this part of the NTSB investigative process,” Inman said Thursday. “If we find something that is a significant issue that warrants immediate action, we will not hesitate to make those recommendations and make them public.”
By Thursday afternoon, NTSB had yet to recover aircraft flight recorders, Inman said. Sikorsky will be part of the investigation, Inman said, adding that NTSB rules prohibit official parties in investigations from speaking publicly or providing documents related to active investigations.
Thursday morning outside Sikorsky headquarters in Stratford, Connecticut, a security staff member directed CT Insider queries to corporate representatives.
“We are deeply saddened and send our condolences to those that lost loved ones,” a Sikorsky spokesperson said Thursday morning. “We have offered our support to the investigation and our customer. Safety is our top priority.”
There have been no reported survivors during search operations Thursday morning, with 60 passengers and four crew members reportedly aboard the PSA Airlines jet, and three soldiers on the U.S. Army helicopter. PSA Airlines is an affiliate of American Airlines.
The helicopter and crew were with the Army’s 12th Aviation Battalion out of Davison Army Airfield in Fort Belvoir, Virginia, according to news reports citing a spokesperson with the Joint Task Force-National Capital Region/Military District of Washington.
Sikorsky builds Black Hawk fuselages in Bridgeport, Connecticut, then ships them to Stratford for full assembly. More onboard systems are installed at a Lockheed Martin facility in Owego, New York, including systems allowing for night-time operation.
Sikorsky is also making a new fleet of CH-53K King Stallion helicopters for the U.S. Marine Corps in Stratford.
Dating back to 1982 the UH-60 model of the Black Hawk has been involved in 418 incidents that resulted in 1,006 deaths, including Wednesday’s collision, according to the Flight Safety Foundation’s Aviation Safety Network database. Many of the deaths involving the UH-60 Black Hawk over its history happened in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks of 2001.
Other deaths have occurred as a result of crashes during military training exercises, including the loss of nine 101st Airborne Division soldiers in a collision between two Black Hawks during a 2023 training mission near Fort Campbell in Kentucky.
In 2024, eight people died in a collision between two helicopters flown by Japan’s Maritime Self-Defense Force during nighttime anti-submarine training over water. Mitsubishi Heavy Industries makes the SH-60J helicopters involved in that collision for Japan’s military. It’s design is based on the Black Hawk, with onboard avionics systems from Japan suppliers.
The Army envisions the Black Hawk in its fleet for the rest of this century but plans to introduce the Bell V-280 Valor as its next long-range assault aircraft. The Army rejected Sikorsky’s proposed replacement for the Black Hawk called Defiant-X, which features two sets of stacked rotors spinning in opposite directions to produce better maneuverability and speed.
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