In a video statement, Hegseth said the helicopter was flown by a "fairly experienced crew" doing a "required annual night evaluation" at the moment of the crash. Hegseth added that the crew was wearing night-vision goggles.

Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth called the horrific Washington DC plane crash a “horrible loss of life” while providing an update on the incident Thursday

The father of the man piloting an American Airlines jet that collided with an Army helicopter mid-air in Washington, D.C. has spoken out. Sam Lilley, 28, was one of two people piloting the flight from Wichita, Kansas, his father Timothy Lilley told Fox 5 Atlanta. All 67 people on board both aircraft are feared to be dead, officials say.