UK Foreign Office updates travel advice following Washington DC plane crash that killed 67 people

UK Foreign Office updates travel advice following Washington DC plane crash that killed 67 people

The UK Foreign Office has updated its travel advice following a plane crash near Washington DC which killed 67 people.

The mid-air collision between an Army helicopter and an American Airlines jet killed all 67 people aboard the two aircraft, officials said on Thursday. The plane carried 60 passengers and four crew members, and three soldiers were aboard the helicopter.

Following the crash, the UK Foreign Office issued an update and warned people to expect possible disruption to air travel in Washington DC. It said: “Recovery efforts are underway in Washington DC following the fatal air accident on 29 January involving American Airlines flight 5342 from Wichita, Kansas, and a military helicopter. If you are concerned about anybody who may have been involved in the accident, contact American Airlines on 1800 679 8215 (from inside the US), or see news.aa.com.”

Officials further advised that if you are due to fly in the affected area you should follow the guidance of local services, check with your airline or travel operator for information on possible flight cancellations or delays and be prepared for potential delays at the airport. This travel advice also covers American Samoa, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and United States Virgin Islands.

Passengers on the American Airlines flight included a group of figure skaters, their coaches and family members who were returning from a development camp that followed the US Figure Skating Championships in Wichita. “We are devastated by this unspeakable tragedy and hold the victims’ families closely in our hearts,” US Figure Skating said in a statement.

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Skaters Jinna Han and Spencer Lane were among those killed, according to Doug Zeghibe, chief executive of the Skating Club of Boston. Their mothers, Jin Han and Christine Lane, as well as their coaches Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov, also died.

Skating organisations in Philadelphia and the Washington area also said some of their young athletes had been aboard the plane. In addition, a number of students were on board.

Cedarville University in Ohio said one of the passengers on the plane was Grace Maxwell, who was studying mechanical engineering. Three other students from schools in Fairfax County, Virginia, and six parents from the district were also on the plane.

The FAA said the mid-air crash occurred before 9pm EST in some of the most tightly controlled and monitored airspace in the world, just over three miles south of the White House and the Capitol. American Airlines Flight 5342 was inbound to Reagan National at an altitude of about 400 feet and a speed of about 140 mph when it rapidly lost altitude over the Potomac River, according to data from its radio transponder.

View news Source: https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/world-news/uk-foreign-office-updates-travel-30904216

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