If changes aren't made, that near-miss becomes a mid-air collision,” one aviation safety expert said. “Unfortunately, that's what we had last night.”

Everyone aboard an American Airlines jet carrying 60 passengers and four crew members that collided with an Army helicopter was feared dead in what was likely to be the worst U.S. aviation disaster in almost a quarter century,

A regional jet flown for American Airlines Group Inc. collided in a deadly midair crash with a military helicopter as it flew into Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, prompting a search and rescue operation for any survivors in the Potomac River.

DCA is one of the most demanding airports in the world. It also has what’s known as ‘helicopter alley’ with hundreds of police, military, news and rescue helicopters criss-crossing

The airspace around Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport has long been problematic due to heavy military and commercial flight activity in the nation’s capital, according to industry insiders.

More than 60 people were killed when an American Airlines regional passenger jet collided with a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter on Wednesday and crashed into the frigid Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.

American Airlines passenger jet near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport near Washington, D.C. The jet, which was flying from Wichita, Kansas, carried 64 people, while the helicopter had three people on board.

The father of 28-year-old PSA Airlines co-pilot Sam Lilley, who was killed in the deadly collision near Ronald Reagan Washington

The collision between an American Airlines Group Inc. regional jet and a military helicopter near Ronald Reagan airport in Washington left no survivors on board the two aircraft, authorities said,

The Federal Aviation Administration in a statement said American Airlines Flight 5342, departing from Wichita, Kansas to Washington, collided around 9 p.m. midair while approaching the runway with a Sikorsky H-60 helicopter.

As news broke of an American Airlines plane and an Army Black Hawk helicopter colliding above Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport Wednesday night, politicians and officials took to social media to offer concerns and prayers for the victims.

While officials have not said how many people died or were injured, the crash has already taken an emotional toll on the local communities.