A military helicopter was carrying out a secretive training mission when it collided with an American Airlines passenger jet, the details of which are mostly “classified,” officials said.
All three soldiers aboard the ill-fated UH-60 Black Hawk chopper were part of the 12th Aviation Battalion, which is responsible for transporting members of the government to a safe location in the event of a national crisis or attack.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said they were performing a “continuity of government” drill when the collision occurred just outside Washington, D.C. on Wednesday night. The drill allows pilots to “rehearse in ways that would reflect a real-world scenario,” Hegseth said.
When asked for specifics, the defense secretary declined to offer further comment, telling Fox News that he didn’t want to get “into anything that’s classified.” His comments echo those from Jonathan Koziol, chief of staff for the Army’s aviation directorate, who told reporters that “some of their mission is to support the Department of Defense if something really bad happens in this area, and we need to move our senior leaders.”
Koziol added: “They do need to be able to understand the environment, the air traffic, the routes, to ensure the safe travel of our senior leaders throughout our government.”
President Trump has said the Black Hawk was flying “too high” when it collided with American Eagle Flight 5342, at the time carrying 60 passengers and four crewmembers from Wichita, Kan. to Ronald Reagan National Airport.
Everyone onboard, including more than a dozen figure skaters, many of them in their teens, died in the crash.
All three soldiers on the military helicopter were also killed, though only two have been identified. They are Staff Sgt. Ryan Austin O’Hara, 28, of Lilburn, Ga., and Chief Warrant Officer 2 Andrew Loyd Eaves, 39, of Great Mills, Md.
The incident marks the deadliest U.S. air disaster in more than 20 years.