By Carol Glatz
Catholic News Service
VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis offered his condolences to the families of victims and to the entire nation following a deadly midair collision between a passenger plane and an Army helicopter near Washington.
“I express my spiritual closeness to all those affected by this tragedy,” the pope said in a telegram sent Jan. 30 to U.S. President Donald Trump.
“In commending the souls of the deceased to the loving mercy of almighty God, I offer my deepest sympathies to the families who are now mourning the loss of a loved one,” the pope wrote.
“I likewise pray for those involved in the recovery efforts, and invoke upon all in the nation the divine blessings of consolation and strength,” he wrote.
An American Airlines jet carrying 60 passengers and four crew members flying from Kansas collided with a Black Hawk helicopter carrying three soldiers while approaching Ronald Reagan National Airport for a landing around 9 p.m. local time Jan. 29. The wreckage plunged into the Potomac River, and search and rescue teams did not expect to find any survivors Jan. 30 given the frigid temperatures.
Twenty-eight bodies had been recovered, including 27 from the plane and one from the Black Hawk helicopter as of early Jan. 30, according to officials.
The Associated Press reported that passengers included a group of figure skaters, their coaches, and family members returning from a training camp following the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Wichita.
Cutline for featured image: Emergency service vehicles are on the scene after American Eagle flight 5342 collided with a Blackhawk helicopter while approaching Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport and crashed in the Potomac River Jan. 29, 2025. The flight was inbound to Reagan National Airport at an altitude of about 400 feet and a speed of about 140 miles per hour when it suffered a rapid loss of altitude. The Canadian-made Bombardier CRJ-701 twin-engine jet was manufactured in 2004 and can be configured to carry up to 70 passengers. (OSV News photo/Carlos Barria, Reuters)
