Speaking from the Brady Briefing Room at the White House Thursday morning, President Donald Trump expressed his condolences to the victims of an American Airlines flight collision with a U.S. Army Blackhawk helicopter Wednesday night.
"This is a tragedy that should not have happened," Trump said. "We are a country in mourning."
"Now we mourn, and we pray and would like to ask all Americans to join me in a moment of silence as we ask God to watch over those who have lost their lives and bring comfort to the loved ones," he continued.
President Trump to the families of those killed in the horrific plane crash in DC Wednesday night:
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) January 30, 2025
"On behalf of the First Lady, myself, and 340 million Americans, our hearts our shattered along side yours, and our prayers are with you now and in the days to come." pic.twitter.com/7As400OXGQ
There were 64 passengers, including the crew, onboard the plane. Three soldiers were on the helicopter. All 67 were killed. There were no survivors.
Trump explained there was an elevation and vision problem, putting the helicopter and the plane at the same level in the air, ultimately resulting in a crash.
TRUMP: "We do not know what led to this crash...We'll find out how this disaster occurred and we'll ensure nothing like this every happens again." pic.twitter.com/8GnrtcehNt
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) January 30, 2025
"What happened yesterday should not have happened. And when Americans take off in airplanes they should expect to land...we will not accept excuses," Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said.
"No excuses, we're going to get to the bottom of this," Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth echoed.
Merit and DEI policies were also spoken about in the aftermath of the crash, with Trump and his Cabinet members emphasizing the need to hire on skill, not skin color or quota.
REPORTER: Are we going to see some firings of those diversity hires?
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) January 30, 2025
TRUMP: I would say the answer is yes, if we find people aren't mentally competant. pic.twitter.com/ZlzxUYmvbY