Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, who was sworn in earlier this week, said on Thursday both an American Airlines passenger jet and a U.S. Army helicopter were in standard flight patterns before they collided above Ronald Reagan National Airport near Washington, D.C.
Watch Duffy’s remarks in the player above.
Duffy told reporters both aircraft had been located as the investigation into the crash continued.
LIVE UPDATES: Jet and helicopter collide at D.C. airport
All 64 people aboard the American Airlines jet were feared dead in what was likely to be the worst U.S. aviation disaster in almost a quarter century, officials said.
At least 28 bodies were pulled from the icy waters of the Potomac River after the midair collision Wednesday night when the helicopter apparently flew in the path of the jet as it was landing at the airport.
Duffy said the body of the plane was found upside-down in three sections in waist-deep water.
There was no immediate word on the cause of the collision, but officials said flight conditions were clear as the jet coming from Wichita, Kansas.
