American president Donald tramp announced at the press conference that in the collision between an "American Airlines" passenger plane and a military helicopter there were no survivors and that now the rescue teams are focused only on finding the victims.
There were a total of 60 passengers and four crew members in the plane.
The news conference, which was attended by US Vice President JD Vance, Defense Secretary Pete Hegsett and Transport Secretary Sean Duffy, began with a minute's silence, after which Trump said "the country is in mourning".
"What happened shook everyone, including people from other countries," said Trump and stated that there were Russian citizens among the dead.
“We can only imagine the agony you are all feeling. Our hearts are broken and we are here to wipe away the tears," said Trump and said "now we are all one family."
Trump said he has "strong opinions" about what led to the crash near Ronald Reagan Airport.
"While we don't yet know the exact cause of the accident, we have some very strong opinions and ideas, and I think we'll be sharing them soon," Trump said.
He added that he believes they have a "pretty good guess" and that the cause of the tragedy will be thoroughly investigated to make sure nothing like it ever happens again, and that a full investigation will be conducted by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and the military.
The plane worked "everything as it should"
Speaking about the causes of the tragedy, Trump stated that the passenger plane was "doing everything right" and was "on the right path", implying that the helicopter pilot was to blame for the accident.
"For some reason, the helicopter was at the same height and moving at a very unfavorable angle," Trump said, adding that his pilot could have stopped, raised, lowered or turned, but "he did the opposite of what he was told to do." was said".
The American president also criticized the so-called Diversity Program, saying that it may have also contributed to the tragedy, and in that context he cited a text that talks about a program for employing people with severe intellectual and psychological problems in the Federal Aviation Administration.
"The federal administration says that people with severe disabilities are the most underrepresented segment of the workforce and they want to include them as air traffic controllers, but I don't think it's a good idea," Trump said, adding that he believes that only brilliant people should fill those jobs. .
The Minister of Defense said that the accident was caused by a military helicopter, whose crew was undergoing routine training.
"The military regularly carries out dangerous and routine operations, but last night, unfortunately, a mistake was made." There is no excuse, we will investigate this in detail," said Hegseth.
Source: FoNet
