No survivors in DCA midair crash that departed from Wichita; it's unclear how many passengers were Wichitans

Chance Swaim, The Wichita Eagle on Jan 30, 2025

By clicking submit, I authorize Arcamax and its affiliates to: (1) use, sell, and share my information for marketing purposes, including cross-context behavioral advertising, as described in our Privacy Policy , (2) add to information that I provide with other information like interests inferred from web page views, or data lawfully obtained from data brokers, such as past purchase or location data, or publicly available data, (3) contact me or enable others to contact me by email or other means with offers for different types of goods and services, and (4) retain my information while I am engaging with marketing messages that I receive and for a reasonable amount of time thereafter. I understand I can opt out at any time through an email that I receive, or by clicking here

WICHITA, Kan. — Wichita airport officials and city leaders said they don’t have a list of the 64 passengers and crew members from Flight 5342, and it remains unclear how many them are Wichitans.

“At this time, we don’t have that information, and I know we don’t have the manifest at this moment,” Wichita Mayor Lily Wu said at a news conference Thursday morning.

Flight 5342 departed from Wichita’s Dwight D. Eisenhower National Airport at 5:18 p.m. on Thursday and collided with an Army Black Hawk helicopter at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport about two and half hours later. The helicopter was carrying three people.

All 67 are believed to be dead, D.C.-area search and rescuers said after an overnight search in the frigid water of the Potomac River near the airport.

“This is such a tragic day for our community,” Congressman Ron Estes, a Wichita Republican, said at an 8 a.m. news conference at Wichita City Hall. “So many of us will be touched by people that we know, directly or indirectly, that were victims of this tragic tragedy that happened.”

One family of a passenger or crew member from Wichita showed up at the airport overnight to speak with airport support staff, Wu said at an 8 a.m. news conference. It’s unclear how many other family members — if any — have been notified.

“This is a terrible tragedy that will unite those in Washington, DC and Wichita, Kansas forever,” Wu said. “We’re hearing recovery teams in Washington, D.C. have pulled more than two dozen bodies from the icy waters. We do not know yet final confirmation on all of the individuals who were on that flight, and of course, we will share that information, but not before families have been first contacted.”

Estes said the crash — the first major commercial airline crash with fatalities since 2009— could also have other effects on Wichita, a city with an economy largely dependent on aviation manufacturing.

“We have such a history being involved in aviation and being a good-knit community like we are, it’s going to have consequences for years to come,” Estes said, while trying to maintain confidence in air safety.

“We have the safest skies of any country in the world, and when a tragic incident like this happens, obviously we want to do the investigation, which will take days and weeks to go through that process, and to make sure that we can prevent accidents like this from happening in the future.”

Jesse Romo, director of airports for the Wichita Airport Authority, said American Airlines will be providing updates and urged any family members of potential passengers to call the American Airlines hotline.

“Most of this incident occurred at D.C., and it’s being managed by the local partners and federal agencies that are responding in the D.C. area,” Romo said. “But, as was asked earlier, the manifest will be managed by American Airlines, and that information will be disseminated through their official sources as well as NTSB (National Transportation Safety Board).”

Wu said the city will be hosting a prayer vigil at noon Thursday at Wichita City Hall. The public is welcome to attend, she said.

“Our hearts are heavy as a city, our hearts are heavy as a city council, and we are here to provide the support needed for our community and all who have been affected,” Wu said. “We are still learning minute by minute additional details about this tragedy, and we will share those details and confirmed information when we receive that.”

_____