Helicopter routes closed near Reagan National Airport after midair collision: Report

Low-altitude helicopter corridor that was in use at time of Wednesday’s crash 'indefinitely' been shut down, CNN reports

By Diyar Guldogan

WASHINGTON (AA) - The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) closed helicopter routes near Reagan National Airport after Wednesday's deadly mid-air collision, CNN reported on Friday.

Citing an agency official, CNN said that the low-altitude helicopter corridor that was in use at the time of this week’s crash has "indefinitely" been shut down by the FAA.

A total of 67 people were killed after a military helicopter collided with an American Airlines regional jet, near Washington Reagan National Airport, and plunged into the Potomac River late Wednesday.

According to the report, Army Black Hawk was using what is known as helicopter Route 4, with FAA charts showing helicopters in the corridor must be at or below 200 feet above sea level.

The official said the FAA also closed Route 1, a helicopter route that runs south of the Key Bridge connecting DC’s Georgetown neighborhood to Rosslyn, Virginia, according to CNN.

US President Donald Trump on Friday said the military helicopter that collided with a commercial plane midair was "flying too high."

"The Blackhawk helicopter was flying too high, by a lot. It was far above the 200 foot limit. That’s not really too complicated to understand, is it?" Trump wrote on his Truth Social media account.

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