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1 American Airlines Jet Black Boxes Recovered From DC Plane Crash
It was announced yesterday that there were no survivors in the horrific crash between an American Airlines passenger jet and a military helicopter. The plane was carrying 60 passengers and four crew members, while there were three enlisted people on board the helicopter. Dive teams suspended their activities just before 4 pm yesterday because they had recovered all of the bodies possible without the fuselage of the plane being moved. By that point, around 40 of the 67 bodies had been recovered. Additional remains will be extracted from the wreckage when it’s lifted to the surface, but rescue crews say some of the victims may not be recovered because of the fireball created when the two aircraft collided. The American Airlines plane’s cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder were recovered from the wreckage late yesterday, and both were taken to National Transportation Safety Board labs to be evaluated. While American Airlines’ Wichita to DC direct flight service is set to resume tonight, Runway 33 at Reagan National Airport will be closed until February 7th according to a notice sent to pilots.
2 President Trump Appoints New FAA Administrator To Fill Vacancy
The day after the crash of a military helicopter and a passenger jet Wednesday night, President Donald Trump appointed Christopher Rocheleau as the acting administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration. Rocheleau is a 22-year veteran of the FAA and the US Air Force who also worked with the TSA and was most recently chief operating officer of the National Business Aviation Association. Trump described him as “highly respected” and “a very capable guy.” The previous FAA administrator, Michael Whitaker, resigned when Trump took office last week.
3 FBI Director Nominee Kash Patel Gets Grilled In Confirmation Hearing
Several confirmation hearings were held for cabinet-level nominees in the Trump administration yesterday, with one turning combative at times. Kash Patel clashed with Democratic committee members Sens. Adam Schiff, Amy Klobuchar, Chris Coons, Richard Blumenthal and others. He fired back at questions about his support for the pardoned January 6th attackers, and refused to say several things he was pressured to say by the Democratic committee members. Patel wouldn’t say he would resign if pressured, wouldn’t say that Joe Biden won the 2020 election, and repeatedly said he couldn’t respond to partial quotes during the five-hour hearing.