CBS Evening News S2025E27: Episode 27

Overview

There were no survivors when an American Airlines flight carrying 64 people collided with an Army Black Hawk helicopter carrying three soldiers Wednesday night while approaching for landing at Reagan National Airport. CBS News has learned that just one air traffic control worker from the Reagan National Airport tower was managing the helicopters and planes, a job normally done by two people. Kris Van Cleave has the latest. District of Columbia Fire and Emergency Medical Services Chief John Donnelly spoke to CBS News about the agency's response to the midair collision between an American Airlines plane and an Army helicopter, and what recovery efforts will look like in the coming days. There were three soldiers aboard the Sikorsky H-60 Army Black Hawk helicopter that collided with an American Airlines flight carrying 64 people outside Washington, D.C., on Wednesday night. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the Black Hawk was on a "routine" training flight at the time. Charlie D'Agata has more on how Black Hawks are utilized around the nation's capital. Robert Sumwalt, CBS News transportation safety expert and analyst and former chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board, detailed a map and timeline of the midair collision between an American Airlines flight and an Army helicopter. Six members of the Skating Club of Boston, an elite figure skating community, were killed aboard the American Airlines flight which collided with an Army helicopter Wednesday night near Reagan National Airport. Beth Germano has more. Given the congestion in the skies on a daily basis, U.S. aviation has a remarkable safety record. However, Wednesday's midair collision between a passenger jet and an Army helicopter outside Washington, D.C., may have shattered the flying public's sense of safety. Mark Strassmann explains.