American Airlines confirms there’ll never be another Flight 5342 ever again
American Airlines has confirmed there will never be another Flight 5342 for the airline.
The decision was made after American Airlines Flight 5342 was involved in a midair collision on Wednesday (29 January) with a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter in Washington, D.C.
The crash claimed the lives of 67 people. There were 60 passengers on board AA5342 plus four crew. Three soldiers were in the army aircraft.
At a press conference later that evening, DC Fire and EMS Chief John Donnelly says they 'don't know if there are any survivors', adding that his team will be working with the National Transportation Safety Board to help any preserve evidence indicating what had resulted in the collision.
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On Thursday the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) confirmed that the crash had no survivors.
The crash occurred in mid-air, whilst the PSA Airlines jet (AA 5432) was preparing to land at Ronald Reagan National Airport just outside of Washington D.C. after originally departing from Wichita, Kansas.
At around 9pm local time, the aircraft collided with a Black Hawk Sikorsky H-60 helicopter, which itself had departed from Fort Belvoir, Virginia.
According to witnesses of the devastating collision, both aircrafts subsequently plummeted into the Potomac River, with search teams, boats and helicopters having since been dispatched to search for any survivors.
In the hours since, audio from air traffic control has emerged, having been recorded from moments before and after the collision.
In the clip, ATC operators can be heard asking the helicopter's pilot if they could see the American Airlines flight.
The muffled audio also hears more commands and confirmations being made by air traffic control staff, with one being heard asking: "PAT 2-5 do you have the CRJ in sight?"
The same controller can be heard requesting moments later: "Pat 2-5 pass behind the CRJ."
Seconds later, a gasp can be heard at the moment of the crash from the tower, which immediately alerted another pilot of the collision.
On Friday (31 January) a statement was shared with People confirming that the identification number Flight AA5342 would no longer exist.
"Flight AA5342 will not be used for any future American Airlines flights,” the airline confirmed.
The airline’s decision to retire the flight number AA5342 is a common industry practice in the event of a tragedy.
Gregory Robinson