Staffing levels at the air traffic control tower at Ronald Reagan National Airport were 'not normal for the time of day and volume of traffic,' according to a preliminary report

An American Airlines plane carrying 60 passengers and four crew members collided with an Army Black Hawk helicopter outside Reagan National Airport near Washington, D.C. Wednesday evening. Three soldiers were onboard the helicopter and a massive search and rescue operation is now unfolding in the Potomac River.

Political leaders had warned about the dangers of Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Washington, D.C. months before an American Airlines flight collided with a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter on its approach to the airport.

An American Airlines plane, believed to be carrying 60 passengers and four crew members, has crashed with a Blackhawk military helicopter over the Potomac River in Washington DC

Officials do not believe anyone survived the midair collision between an American Airlines passenger jet and a military helicopter over Ronald Reagan National Airport near Washington, D.C. on Wednesday night.

Mark Roberts, a retired American Airlines pilot with 40 years of experience, spoke about some of the challenges both crews faced flying at nighttime.

As the American Eagle Flight 5342, a CRJ jet, approached the helicopter, the tower controller asked the helicopter pilot if he had the CRJ in sight. The helicopter pilot cannot be heard responding to the question before the two aircraft collided.

A passenger jet has collided with a helicopter while landing at Ronald Reagan National Airport near Washington. Watch live coverage from WJLA in Washington, D.C.

The American Airlines plane operating as American Eagle Flight 5342 collided with an Army Black Hawk helicopter near Reagan National Airport.

After an American Airlines flight and a military helicopter collided and crashed into the Potomac river Jan. 29, more than 30 bodies have been recovered, NBC Washington has confirmed.

Kansas officials are sharing what they know after an American Airlines flight that departed from Wichita crashed in Washington, D.C., Wednesday night.