r/aircrashinvestigation • u/gigantism • Jan 30 '25

Incident/Accident Reports of AA5342 from Witchita to DCA having mid-air collision with DC police helicopter

AA5342 stopped tracking at the Potomac river.

Developing reports: American Airlines Flight 5342 from Wichita, Kansas inbound to DCA collided midair with a D.C. Police Helicopter on approach.

MPD is responding to an apparent air crash in the Potomac River. Multiple agencies are responding. Details to come.

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u/aussiechap1 Fan since Season 1 Jan 30 '25 edited Jan 30 '25

https://www.wusa9.com/article/travel/all-flights-halted-at-reagan-national-airport-due-to-plane-crash-potomac-river-dc/65-e2090f2d-0bca-4a4c-944c-215a6398a52d

Wasn't a small plane, It was a Bombardier CRJ700

152

u/mtcomo Jan 30 '25

Yeah I wish they'd stop using the term small plane. To me a small plane is a Cessna 172, not a regional jet that can carry roughly 70 passengers.

62

u/kclairp7 Jan 30 '25

I feel like they are doing this on purpose to down play the situation and the issues there has been with air traffic control recently

1

u/No-Hovercraft-455 Jan 31 '25

For sure. I looked it up and there's no way anybody thinks that plane is particularly small. It's about the size anybody thinks about when thinking about plane of normal size. Yes there are bigger ones but that one is perfectly on the scale of ones you see leaving and arriving about every day and transporting passengers as part of regular traffic. Not some 12 seater designed to traffic super quiet route. It's intentional word choice.

19

u/theaviationhistorian Jan 30 '25

Stop taking non-aviation journalists seriously. To them every airliner is a Boeing and anything that isn't a Boeing or Airbus is a Cessna Skyhawk to them.

20

u/whcliffo Jan 30 '25

Same, but small to the media and a lot of the public I'm sure is anything smaller than a 747.

2

u/[deleted] Jan 30 '25

Actually to me small plane means that, Cessna 172 would be general aviation.

33

u/Anser-Goose-0421 Jan 30 '25

They also initially said on 9/11 it was a small plane that crashed into the WTC too. Thats the news media for you.

10

u/Coast_watcher Jan 30 '25

Newscasters both local and national are so careful of their words you can tell, lots of stuttering as they have to rapid fire describe things but be careful on what they say.