Reagan National Halts Flights Amid CRJ Crash

DALLAS — Regional aviation operations have been suspended at Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) in Arlington, Virginia, following an accident involving a small aircraft and military Blackhawk helicopter.

According to a statement released by the District of Columbia Fire and Emergency Medical Services, a small aircraft crashed into the Potomac River near the airport on Wednesday evening after what seems like a mid-air collision and explosion, as per a webcam video taken from the Kennedy Center (see below).

The aircraft involved in the incident is a Bombardier CRJ-701ER (registration N709PS) operated by PSA Airlines (OH) under the American Eagle (AA) brand. The aircraft is 20 years old, having been manufactured in September 2004, and bears the serial number 10165. It's registered in the U.S. with type code CRJ7 and mode S code A97753.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has corroborated that a "PSA Airlines Bombardier CRJ700 regional jet collided in midair with a Sikorsky H-60 helicopter while on approach to Runway 33" at DCA around 9 p.m. local time. "It departed from Wichita, Kansas. The FAA and NTSB will investigate. The NTSB will lead the investigation."

American Airlines tweeted it was "aware of reports that American Eagle flight 5342" (also listed as JIA5342), which operated this evening from Wichita (ICT) to DCA, had "been involved in an incident" and that it would "provide information as it becomes available."

Reagan National, the the closest airport to Washington, D.C.,has announced that it will remain closed until 5 a.m. due to the emergency. As of this writing, it is unclear how many casualties there are, but 64 souls, 60 passengers and 4 crew, were on board the CRJ. Fireboats are currently on the scene.

This is the first fatal accident for a US Airline since 2009 when Colgan Air Flight 3407 crashed during landing near Buffalo Niagara International Airport (BUF), killing all 49 people on board.

This is a developing story.