Trump says helicopter in DC midair collision 'flying too high'

WASHINGTON -- US President Donald Trump said on social media Friday that the Black Hawk helicopter was "flying too high" when it collided with a passenger jet that was approaching the runway at the Reagan National Airport Wednesday night.

"The Blackhawk helicopter was flying too high, by a lot. It was far above the 200 foot (roughly 61 meters) limit. That's not really too complicated to understand, is it???" Trump said in a post on Truth Social.

The allowed maximum altitude for flights over the Potomac River near the Reagan National Airport is 200 feet.

However, the helicopter was last recorded at an approximate altitude of 400 feet before the crash occurred, according to data from Flightradar24.

At a White House press conference on Thursday, Trump said that there were some warnings prior to the midair collision, "but the warnings were given very, very late." Trump also noted that there was "a pilot problem" from the standpoint of the helicopter.

Just a few hours after the collision, Trump reacted to the accident on Truth Social: "Why didn't the helicopter go up or down, or turn. Why didn't the control tower tell the helicopter what to do instead of asking if they saw the plane."

The American Airlines plane operating as American Eagle Flight 5342 had 60 passengers and four crew members, while three US Army soldiers were onboard the Black Hawk helicopter. Authorities said Thursday that there were no survivors.

As of Thursday evening, over 40 bodies had been recovered from the wreckage, US media reported.