Trump says deadly D.C. air collision should have been prevented

President Trump said Thursday morning that the crash between a military helicopter and an American Airlines jet over the Potomac River was preventable.

In a Truth Social post, Mr. Trump raised numerous questions about the incident, including why the helicopter didn’t engage in evasive maneuvers and if air traffic controllers could have done more to help the helicopter pilot avoid the approaching plane.

“The airplane was on a perfect and routine line of approach to the airport. The helicopter was going straight at the airplane for an extended period of time. It is a clear night, the lights on the plane were blazing, why didn’t the helicopter go up or down, or turn,” Mr, Trump posted.

 “Why didn’t the control tower tell the helicopter what to do instead of asking if they saw the plane,” he posted, referring to publicly available air traffic control audio of the incident.

In a follow-up post, Mr. Trump said it had been “a terrible night” and “God bless you all.”

At the time of the Wednesday night crash Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport — where the plane was scheduled to land — had reported clear skies, visibility of 10 miles and winds sustained out of the northwest at 16 mph, gusting up to 26 mph. The temperature was 50 degrees.

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SEE ALSO: No survivors expected from passenger jet collision with Army helicopter over Potomac River

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The Federal Aviation Administration said the plane collided with a Sikorsky H-60 helicopter while on approach to Runway 33 around 9 pm. The jet had departed from Wichita, Kansas, with 60 passengers and four crew members.

It also said three soldiers were on board the Black Hawk helicopter. Officials say there were no survivors.