The cause of the crash 3 miles 5 kilometers south of the White House and U. Capitol was under investigation Monday as crews recovered wreckage from the river.
Crews have identified 55 bodies. Authorities are confident all will be found, Washington, D. The regional jet out of Wichita, Kansas carried 60 passengers and four crew and was preparing to land. Skies were clear. A few minutes before the Canadian-made Bombardier CRJ series twin-engine jet was to land, air traffic controllers asked Flight if it could use a shorter runway. The pilots agreed. Controllers cleared the landing. Flight-tracking sites show the plane adjusted its approach to the new runway.
Less than 30 seconds before the collision, an air traffic controller asked the helicopter if it had the plane in sight. The military pilot responded yes. Moments later the controller made another call to the helicopter, apparently telling the copter to wait for the jet to pass.
Crews were seen aboard a vessel with a crane in the river early Monday and by around midday they had moved a large piece of the jet. Portions of the two aircraft will be loaded onto flatbed trucks and taken to a hangar.
More than people participated in the recovery effort at some moments, officials said. Two Navy barges lifted wreckage from the river. Divers and salvage workers adhere to strict protocols and stop moving debris if a body is found because the dignified recovery of remains takes precedence, Col. Francis B. Pera of the Army Corps of Engineers said.
