Early Wednesday night, a horrifying accident occurred when an airplane carrying 64 people crashed into a military helicopter over Washington, DC. Now as the investigation continues, the chilling audio from air traffic control was unveiled from the moment the DC plane crash happened.
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Air Traffic Control Audio From DC Plane Crash Revealed
The American Airlines passenger flight so far has seen no survivors, although officials confirmed they have recovered 27 bodies. This makes it the deadliest U.S. air crash seen in over 20 years, and the captured audio demonstrates how terrible the situation was.
LiveATC.net recorded the audio from air tower communications. It was right when the Army Black Hawk helicopter collided with Flight 5342 in a fiery explosion.
"Tower, did you see that?" One voice asked after witnessing the incident.
This led to a different air traffic controller redirecting all aircraft to go around Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport if they were heading to Runway 33. According to an aviation expert, Reagan Airport is one of the most difficult airports to land in.
Another ATC said, "Crash, crash, crash, this is an alert three." They then continue to repeat this.
A female ATC pipes up at a different point to describe what she and everyone around her had witnessed. "I just saw a fireball and then it was just gone." She also noted that the aircraft hit the river and she hadn't seen anything since.
More audio captured another ATC explaining the situation. "I don't know if you caught earlier what happened, but there was a collision on the approach into 33." They also revealed they would be shutting down operations "for the indefinite future."
Since the devastating crash, investigations discovered that the Black Hawk Helicopter was conducting a training mission. Due to the difficult visibility, it would've been tough for either aircraft to see each other.
Meanwhile, the American Airlines flight had four crew members commanding it with 60 passengers. We now know that some of the victims, around 14, were professional figure skaters. In reaction to the event, Transport Secretary Sean Duffy claimed that the DC plane crash was entirely preventable, making the situation even more tragic.
