Plane crash near Washington: over 40 bodies have been recovered from the Potomac River, according to CNN.

On Wednesday evening, January 31, near Washington, an American Airlines passenger plane collided with a Black Hawk military helicopter during its landing. According to the latest reports, over 40 bodies were recovered from the river by Thursday afternoon.

This was reported by RBK-Ukraine citing CNN.

According to a source in law enforcement, dive operations have concluded for today due to darkness, water conditions, and a growing belief among rescuers that most of the victims that can be reached without lifting the fuselage from the water have already been found.

Currently, the Washington Fire Department chief, the National Transportation Safety Board, American Airlines, and other officials are meeting with the families of the victims at a family assistance center.

CNN also reports that Kansas Governor Laura Kelly has reached out to the NTSB regarding the manifest—a document listing all passengers and crew members on the flight. It is expected to be received today, Friday (still Thursday in the U.S.).

Additionally, Kelly, the NTSB, and other U.S. officials are waiting until all families of the victims are notified before releasing any details about their identities.

"There were people on the plane from abroad, and this is partly the reason for the delay... We are likely to receive the declaration by tomorrow afternoon," said the Kansas governor.

CNN, during its update, added that one black box from the CRJ 700 aircraft has already been recovered. However, it is still unclear which of the two black boxes has been retrieved.

Crash Near Washington

Recall that U.S. President Donald Trump reacted to the incident. He stated that the plane was on a perfect and normal approach path for landing at the airport. The helicopter, on the other hand, had been heading straight for the plane for a long time and did not ascend or descend. Due to this, Trump publicly questioned why the control tower did not instruct the helicopter to do so instead of asking if they saw the plane.

It later became known that the unit whose pilots crashed had been grounded from flying.

BBC reported that there were 60 passengers and 4 crew members aboard the downed plane, while the helicopter had three military personnel. Both the plane and the helicopter fell into the Potomac River. All 67 individuals aboard perished.