Hundreds of responders have removed at least 28 bodies from the icy waters of the Potomac River after a deadly plane crash, according to officials as of Thursday morning.

One onlooker said that he initially “didn’t think much of it” and thought the collision resembled “shooting stars.”

One of the worst nightmares for travelers might have just happened. An American Airlines plane from Wichita, Kansas (Dwight D. Eisenhower National Airport – ICT) to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) appears to have crashed into the Potomac River.

Through maps, videos, photos and radio transmissions, CNN is piecing together what occurred during the deadly, midair collision.

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.

An American Airlines flight collided with a helicopter in midair as it approached DCA on Wednesday, the FAA said.

DC Fire and EMS say, on Wednesday night a small plane went down near the airport landing in the Potomac River. FAA is saying a military helicopter collided with American Airlines flight 5342 Wednesday, around 9 p.m. as it was landing at DCA. DC Police have confirmed that it was not one of their helicopters involved in the crash.

The deadly collision of an American Airlines regional jet and a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter late Jan. 29 in Washington, D.C., has reignited longstanding congestion concerns at overcrowded Reagan National Airport.

The National Transportation Safety Board typically releases a preliminary report within a few weeks of an accident.

A deadly midair collision between an American Airlines jet and an Army helicopter near the nation’s capital is bringing renewed focus on the federal agency charged with investigating aviation disasters.

The National Transportation Safety Board says it has recovered two so-called “black boxes” from the American Airlines regional jet, following the deadly collision with an Army Black Hawk helicopter on Wednesday evening.