Sat Feb 01 04:36:53 IST 2025: ## Deadly Mid-Air Collision Kills 67 Near Washington D.C.
**Washington, D.C. –** A devastating mid-air collision between an American Airlines passenger jet and a US Army Black Hawk helicopter has claimed the lives of all 67 people onboard, marking the deadliest US air crash in over two decades. The accident occurred Wednesday evening, approximately three miles from the White House and US Capitol, near Reagan Washington National Airport.
Among the victims was 28-year-old American Airlines First Officer Sam Lilley, who was piloting Flight 5342 from Wichita, Kansas, to Washington, D.C. Lilley’s father, Timothy Lilley, a former Army helicopter pilot, expressed his grief in a heartbreaking Facebook post, revealing his son was engaged to be married this fall. “He was thriving in his career and personal life,” Timothy wrote, describing the news as the “worst day of his life.”
The flight included athletes and coaches from the elite figure skating world, with reports confirming the deaths of former Russian world pairs champions Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov among the passengers.
Investigators have recovered the black boxes from the American Airlines plane as recovery efforts continue in the Potomac River. While the investigation is ongoing, Timothy Lilley, drawing on his extensive helicopter piloting experience, speculated to Fox News that the military helicopter may have made a navigational error, particularly given the challenges of nighttime flight over the Potomac. He expressed belief that the commercial jet followed proper procedures.
The crash, which occurred around 8:47 pm EST, has prompted a full-scale investigation into the circumstances surrounding the collision. The incident is the deadliest US air crash since 2001.
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