What We Know About The Black Hawk Crew Involved In Fatal D.C. Plane Crash

Two fathers and service members have been identified as among the three crew members who died Wednesday when their Black Hawk helicopter collided with a passenger jet over the Potomac River near Reagan Washington National Airport, killing all 67 people aboard both aircraft.

Roberto Marquez from Dallas, Texas, sets up a makeshift memorial for the victims of the deadly mid … [+] air collision near Reagan National Airport in Arlington, Virginia, on Jan. 31, 2025.

AFP via Getty Images

Key Facts

Ryan O’Hara, a husband with a 1-year-old son, was the crew chief of the helicopter and a victim in the crash, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp confirmed on social media.

After graduating from Parkview High School in Lilburn, Georgia in 2014, O’Hara, a member of the school’s Marine Corps Junior ROTC program, joined the military.

He has been remembered by colleagues as “one of the most dedicated, disciplined, and committed soldiers I’ve ever worked with.”

Chief Warrant Officer 2 Andrew Eaves of Mississippi was another crew member onboard the helicopter, Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves confirmed.

In a statement, the Eaves family remembered him as a “kind, loving, fun-loving and patriotic man” who “loved his wife and kids fiercely and would have done anything to take care of them.”

His wife, Carrie Eaves, posted to social media asking “for peace while we grieve.”

Get Forbes Breaking News Text Alerts: We’re launching text message alerts so you’ll always know the biggest stories shaping the day’s headlines. Text “Alerts” to (201) 335-0739 or sign up here.

What We Don’t Know

The third helicopter crew member, reportedly a woman, has not been identified by friends or family and the military has not officially released the names of any of the soldiers.

Big Number

At least 18. That’s how many military personnel have died from the crashes and mishaps of Army helicopters, including hard landings and other incidents, in the past two years. Fatalities from these incidents tally higher than those killed in recent combat operations abroad, according to The New York Times.

Key Background

The three soldiers from the 12th Aviation Battalion out of Fort Belvoir, Va. were conducting an annual training exercise aboard the helicopter near Ronald Reagan National Airport when the crash occurred. The collision with an American Airlines passenger jet headed to Washington D.C. from Kansas killed the three people onboard the helicopter and the 64 passengers and crew on the commercial flight. The helicopter crew was described as “fairly experienced” by Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, but President Donald Trump on Friday said the helicopter was flying “far above” its designated flight path. The air traffic control tower had reportedly given the helicopter pilot permission to fly no higher than 200 feet, but the aircraft was outside its approved flight path at the time of the crash. In a press conference on Thursday, Trump blamed air traffic controllers, the helicopter pilots and Biden and Obama-era diversity hiring practices for the tragedy, claiming without evidence that people with “severe intellectual disabilities” had been hired at the FAA because of DEI policies he has since eliminated. Authorities were still looking for the helicopter’s black box data recorder, Hegseth said Friday, and officials are investigating if the crew was using its night vision goggles.

Tangent

More than 40 bodies were recovered from the DC plane crash wreckage in the Potomac River as of early Friday afternoon. Victims are slowly being identified by friends and family and so far include more than a dozen members of the U.S. National Figure Skating team, including two 12-year-olds, two former Russian world champion figure skaters, a civil rights lawyer, parents and students from Fairfax County Public Schools and a group of friends returning from a hunting trip in Kansas.

Luxury House