DC plane crash latest updates: Air traffic staffing ‘not normal’ at time of collision – UK Times

President Donald Trump used a deadly air crash that killed three Army aviators and 64 passengers and crew aboard an American Airlines jet to attack his two Democratic predecessors and falsely suggest the tragedy was the result of diversity initiatives in government.

In his first visit to the White House briefing room since returning to the presidency last week, Trump initially offered a moment of silence for the victims and praised the efforts of first responders after the crash, which took place just before 9 p.m. ET at Reagan National Airport outside Washington.

CNN reports that more than 40 bodies have been removed from the Potomac River as of late Thursday afternoon, citing sources with knowledge of official operations.

Dive operations were concluded for the day due to daylight, conditions on the water and the belief that most of the victims that can be reached without removing parts of the aircraft from the water have already been recovered, a law enforcement source told the outlet.

All 67 people involved in the crash are presumed dead, authorities said previously.

In a joint statement, put out on Thursday, the Washington Figure Skating Club and the Skating Club of Northern Virginia said they were “devastated” by Wednesday night’s collision.

“This heartbreaking accident has shaken the local skating community in Virginia, Maryland, the District of Columbia—as well as in Boston and across the nation,” the statement read. “Our hearts go out to families, friends, and loved ones mourning this unimaginable grief.”

They added: “As we continue to process this tragedy, we honor the memories of those who we have lost—their passion for the sport, the friendships they cultivated, and the joy they brought to the ice. Their presence at our rinks and in our community is deeply felt, and their absence is indescribable.

“WFSC and SCNV are deeply committed to supporting our skaters, their families, and the wider figure-skating community during this heartbreaking time. We know that there is much concern and confusion about who was on the flight, and will share the list once it has been confirmed.”

Donald Trump says he will be meeting with some of the families of the victims from the DC collision, but did not specify when.

“I will be meeting with some people that were very badly hurt with their family member, obviously, but I’ll be meeting with some of the families, yeah,” he told reporters.

Trump said he did not have plans currently to visit first responders at the site of the collision.

A preliminary report by the Federal Aviation Administration has found that staffing at the DCA air traffic control tower was “not normal” at the time of the deadly crash.

The internal report, released on Thursday and reviewed by The New York Times said the controller who was handling helicopters in the airport’s vicinity on Wednesday night was also instructing planes that were landing and departing from its runways.

These jobs are typically assigned to two different controllers.

Donald Trump has signed an executive order effectively blaming Joe Biden and DEI for horrific DC mid-air crash.

The order is titled “Immediate Assessment of Aviation Safety.”

The order states: “In light of the damage done to aviation safety by the Biden administration’s DEI and woke policies, what this presidential memorandum orders is your secretary of transportation and FAA administrator… to basically ensure that we are actively undoing all of that damage.”

“We want the most competent people,” Trump said. “We don’t care what race they are. We want the most competent people, especially in those positions.

“You’re talking about extremely complex things, and if they don’t have a great brain, a great power of the brain, they’re not going to be very good at what they do and bad things will happen.”

CNN political commentator Bakari Sellers apologized on Wednesday night after deleting a tweet that placed blame on President Donald Trump for the deadly midair crash over Ronald Reagan National Airport in Washington, D.C., claiming he “f***ed up” by citing the president’s federal hiring freeze as a potential reason for the horrific accident.

Sellers’ initial post sparked backlash among Trump supporters and right-wing commentators, who called the former Democratic lawmaker “despicable” and a “broken human being” for tying the tragedy to Trump’s executive actions.

Officials said on Thursday that they do not expect any survivors after an American Airlines passenger plane making its landing approach collided with a Black Hawk helicopter that was on a training mission over the D.C. airport. The flight was arriving from Wichita, Kansas, and carried 64 passengers and crew, including several members of the U.S. Figure Skating team. The Army helicopter had three soldiers aboard.

The father of the man piloting an American Airlines jet that collided with an Army helicopter mid-air in Washington, D.C. has spoken out.

Sam Lilley, 28, was one of two people piloting the flight from Wichita, Kansas, his father Timothy Lilley told Fox 5 Atlanta. All 67 people on board both aircraft are feared to be dead, officials say.

The collision happened Wednesday night as the American Airlines flight descended toward Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. The aircraft collided over the Potomac River, where officials are now conducting recovery efforts.

Katie Hawkinson has the story.