Washington plane crash: Heartbreaking final chat between pilot and controller goes viral, ‘I need to land immediately’

A passenger jet with 60 people collided with an Army helicopter while landing at Reagan National Airport. The crash occurred after air traffic controllers cleared the jet for a shorter runway. Rescue operations are ongoing, and President Trump is monitoring the situation.

Livemint, Written By Sharmila Bhadoria
Updated30 Jan 2025, 12:13 PM IST
Washington Plane crash: Emergency service vehicles stand near the site of the crash after American Eagle flight 5342 collided with a helicopter while approaching Reagan Washington National Airport and crashed in the Potomac River, outside Washington, U.S.
Washington Plane crash: Emergency service vehicles stand near the site of the crash after American Eagle flight 5342 collided with a helicopter while approaching Reagan Washington National Airport and crashed in the Potomac River, outside Washington, U.S.(REUTERS)

Washington plane crash: A passenger jet with 60 people onboard collided with an Army helicopter while landing at Ronald Reagan National Airport in the United States on Wednesday. Several casualties were feared in the accident, and a rescue operation is underway.

US President Donald Trump has expressed grief over the accident and said that he is closely monitoring the rescue operation.

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Meanwhile, an audio of the final conversation between the American Airlines pilot and an air traffic controller before the plane crash has gone viral online.

Washington plane crash: Final conversation between pilot and controller | Video

Less than 30 seconds before the crash, an air traffic controller asked the helicopter if it had the arriving plane in sight.

The controller made another radio call to the helicopter moments later: “PAT 25 pass behind the CRJ.” Seconds after that, the two aircraft collided.

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Dan News on X shared a video of the final conversation between the pilot and the traffic controller. At the end of the video, the pilot can be heard saying, “ I need to land immediately.”

Washington plane crash

The tragic midair collission occured between American Airlines plane and a Military helicopter on Wednesday night. At least 18 people died in the accident. No survivor has been found so far, reported AP.

The collision involved a PSA Airlines Bombardier CRJ700 regional jet and a Sikorsky H-60 Black Hawk helicopter, both of which crashed while attempting to land at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.

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The search operation is underway and a police official on the scene confirmed to CBS News that three debris fields were visible in the river and at least 18 bodies had been recovered. "No survivors had been found so far," the police official said.

The search for “Plane Crash” was high on Google India during January 28-29:

The search for “Plane Crash” was high on Google India during January 28-29

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First Published:30 Jan 2025, 11:01 AM IST