ST. LOUIS—A St. Louis man says his daughter-in-law was on the plane that crashed into the Potomac River in Washington, D.C., Wednesday night.
Everyone aboard an American Airlines jet carrying 60 passengers and four crew members that collided with an Army helicopter was feared dead in what was likely to be the worst U.S. aviation disaster in almost a quarter century, officials said Thursday.
Hashim Raza posted on X saying, "we are devastated. We are going to be with our son."
Another relative, Asim Raza, also shared a tweet by a D.C. TV station that said his nephew, Hamaad Raza, got a text from his wife who was on the plane. He said she texted then they were landing in 20 minutes. He added the rest of his text did not get delivered.
The body of the plane was found upside down in three sections in waist-deep water. The wreckage of the helicopter was also found. Donnelly said first responders on Thursday were searching an area of the Potomac River as far south as the Woodrow Wilson Bridge, roughly 3 miles south of the airport.
There was no immediate word on the cause of the collision, but officials said flight conditions were clear as the jet coming from Wichita, Kan., with U.S. and Russian figure skaters and others aboard, was making a routine landing when the helicopter flew into its path.
At least 28 bodies were pulled from the icy waters of the Potomac River after the midair collision Wednesday night when the helicopter apparently flew in the path of the jet as it was landing at Ronald Reagan National Airport near Washington, officials said.
Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Missouri, has opened a hotline for any Missourians impacted by the plane crash. He is asking people that had a family member or loved one on Flight 5342 to reach out for help.