The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said they have launched an investigation into the cause of the crash.

Federal authorities are asking questions as to how the collision between an American Airlines flight and a military helicopter could have occurred.

On Tuesday night, just 24 hours before a deadly collision between a military helicopter and a regional jet at Reagan National Airport, a different passenger jet coming in for a landing at the airport alerted the tower it had to abort. The reason: risk of possible collision with a helicopter.

A dramatic plane crash in frigid temperatures. And a search and rescue that saved lives on the same partially frozen Potomac River. Almost 43 years ago to the day, tragedy struck when a commercial jet − Air Florida Flight 90 − plunged into icy waters shortly after an afternoon takeoff from the same airport where a passenger jet with 64 people aboard collided with an Army Black Hawk helicopter on Wednesday night.

An American Airlines flight crashed into a U.S. Army Black Hawk Helicopter over the Potomac River as it approached Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.

There was a mid-air collision between a commercial airliner and a Sikorsky H-60 Black Hawk helicopter Wednesday night over the Capital Region. “The FAA and NTSB will investigate,” the statement added.

Officials indicated a number of people died after an American Airlines flight collided with a military helicopter Wednesday night, causing both to crash into

Multiple people are dead after passenger jet collides with a military helicopter midair near Reagan National Airport.

Wednesday’s fatal collision and two other incidents dramatically illustrate the challenges pilots and air traffic controllers face in the complex, security-sensitive skies above the nation’s capital.

Multiple fatalities have been reported Thursday morning after an American Airlines plane and a U.S. Army helicopter collided midair near Reagan Airport in D.C.