Deadly American Airlines plane crash impacts flights at RSW

The deadly crash involving an American Airlines Commercial Flight and a military Black Hawk helicopter is affecting flights at Southwest Florida International Airport.

According to federal aviation officials, the American Eagle flight carrying 64 people had taken off from Wichita, Kansas, and was approaching for landing when the collision occurred.

The helicopter was on a training mission with three on board and was on its way to Reagan National Airport in Washington, D.C. when it crossed into the plane’s path.

Search and rescue crews have switched to recovery efforts, pulling bodies out of the Potomac River.

As of 8 a.m., 28 bodies had been recovered.

Even though Southwest Florida is over a thousand miles away, when our country sees a national tragedy like this, it impacts all of us.

So many people are feeling devastated hearing the news as they prepare to travel on Thursday morning.

WINK News spoke to one man heading to Pennsylvania. He thinks this unthinkable event will become even harder to process as we learn the names of the victims.

“When you see something so tragic, and you’re going about your day, and it involves the same way of travel, it’s probably more present in your mind,” said Jerome Foley. “It’s not something that I think is going to stop people from getting on their planes today, but I’m sure that anybody who hears about it, is certainly going to be thinking about it just a little bit more.”

Even as the recovery of bodies and aircraft wreckage continues, Reagan National Airport has since reopened Thursday.

While officials have said it is safe for the airport to reopen, each airline will make decisions on their flights.

Shari Cooper is feeling grateful after a close call involving her niece. As she prepared to fly to Las Vegas, she learned that her niece was on a flight at the same time as the one that crashed last night.

“Last night, my niece lives in D.C., and she was coming home from a business trip, flying into Ronald Reagan at the exact time that this accident happened,” said Cooper.

Fortunately, her niece wasn’t on the flight.

“They diverted her to Dulles Airport, and she’s OK,” said Cooper.

Despite the relief, the tragedy of Wednesday night’s plane crash is a stark reminder of the fragility of life.

“She’s home now, which is D.C., but, but, you know, she had two kids at home. She was flying home and her husband, so we’re all glad she’s safe, but very nerve-wracking,” said Cooper.

Cooper emphasizes the importance of staying in touch while traveling.

“Definitely glad she thought ahead to text my sister, let her know that she was OK because that would have been a bit of a panic,” said Cooper.

Cooper is committed to ensuring her loved ones stay informed during their travels.

“Letting people know is really important, and we’ve always done that in the past, but now we’ll be more mindful even because you don’t think about that. And my husband and I go on vacation a lot, and we don’t think to tell our kids that are far away, what our flight numbers are or anything, so it’s really important to do that,” said Cooper.

Many passengers on their way to Washington, D.C., experienced flight delays, while others faced cancellations. However, flights to Dulles Airport continued as scheduled.