U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Thursday that there were no survivors after a commercial plane carrying 64 passengers collided with a military helicopter near Washington, D.C.
He stated that authorities have not yet determined the cause of the crash involving American Airlines Flight 5342 and an Army Black Hawk helicopter near Reagan National Airport but mentioned that they have "strong theories and insights" regarding the incident.
"We think we have some pretty good ideas, but we'll find out how this disaster occurred, and we'll ensure that nothing like this ever happens again. The FAA and the NTSB and the US military will be carrying out a systematic and comprehensive investigation," he said.
Trump blamed the crew of the military helicopter, saying, "You had a pilot problem from the standpoint of the helicopter."
"It was very clear night, it was cold, but clear and clear as you could be the American Airlines plane had lights blazing, they had all their landing lights on," Trump said.
"You had a helicopter that had the ability to stop, I have helicopters. You can stop a helicopter very quickly. It had the ability to go up or down and had the ability to turn. And the turn it made was not the correct turn, obviously. And it did, somewhat, the opposite of what it was told."
Read next
03:30
U.S. President Donald Trump has demanded that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s corruption trial be cancelled, calling the case a “witch hunt” and suggesting Netanyahu should be pardoned.
03:15
The fragile ceasefire between Iran and Israel held for a second day on Wednesday, as U.S. President Donald Trump confirmed that American and Iranian officials are expected to engage in talks next week—marking a possible diplomatic shift after nearly two weeks of regional warfare.
00:40
NATO member states have agreed to raise their defence spending target to 5% of GDP, marking a sharp increase from the previous 2% goal.
14:34
Trump 'obliteration'
U.S. President Donald Trump insisted on Wednesday that American strikes caused “very severe” damage to Iranian nuclear sites, despite leaked intelligence reports suggesting otherwise.
12:38
Rubio & Moscow
The United States is not planning to impose additional sanctions on Russia for now, aiming instead to keep diplomatic channels open to pursue a peace deal, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment