On Feb. 4, officials in Washington announced that they have recovered the last of the remains of the 67 victims who were killed when a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter crashed into an American Airlines (AAL) passenger plane.
The Bombardier CRJ-700 (BDRAF) carried four crew members and 60 passengers, many of whom were youth returning to Washington DC, following an ice-skating training program in Wichita, Kan. The Army helicopter carried a crew of three.
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'In order to obtain this information, the Black Hawk needs to be recovered'
The deadly crash that occurred on the night of Jan. 29 was the first major plane crash to take place on U.S. soil since a Colgan Air Flight crash near Buffalo Niagara International Airport in February 2009 killed 49 people.
While first responders, the FBI, and the FAA were among those rushed to the crash site, the investigation was later handed over to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).
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On Feb. 4, the NTSB published a significant update which said that the military "Black Hawk was at 300 feet (91.4 meters) on the air traffic control display at the time of the collision." The number has been rounded to the nearest 100 feet. The airspace near Woodrow Wilson Memorial Bridge is capped at 200 feet (60.9 meters) for helicopters.
American Airlines Flight 5342 had been cleared to land at DCA and collided with the Black Hawk on ROUTE 4, which is designated for helicopters.
"NTSB needs additional information to verify data points from the Black Hawk," the NTSB wrote further. "In order to obtain this information, the Black Hawk needs to be recovered from the water, which is expected to take place later this week."
The NTSB update said pieces of the Bombardier, such as the main fuselage, right wing and part of the left wing and left fuselage, and portions of the forward cabin and cockpit, have already been removed from the Potomac River.
'Investigators continue to transcribe the cockpit voice recorders for both aircraft'
The Black Hawk, which broke into smaller pieces and sank deeper into the river, is still being extracted and will be used to further investigate why the crash occurred.
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The report does not specify why the helicopter was flying higher than permitted.
"NTSB investigators continue to transcribe the cockpit voice recorders for both aircraft," the report reads further. "Synchronization work for the Black Hawk flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder is ongoing."
Unified Command, a multi-agency authority used to respond to emergency situations, also announced that it was using large lifts to remove pieces of the helicopter from the river as tidal and weather conditions allow.
All 67 of the victims had been recovered from the crash site by Feb. 4, while all but one have also been positively identified as those aboard the flight.
"Large lifts will continue through Tuesday evening, with unloading expected when environmental and tidal conditions allow on Wednesday," Unified Command said in a statement.
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