Updates: Horror Over DC - Black Hawk Helicopter, Passenger Jet Collide - Bodies in Potomac - Prayer Needed

No one survived a midair crash Wednesday night between an American Airlines passenger jet and a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter, sending wreckage plummeting into the Potomac River.

American Airlines confirmed that the aircraft was carrying 60 passengers and four crew members at the time of impact with the Sikorsky H-60, as reported by WTOP-FM.

The jet, en route from Wichita, Kansas, was approaching Reagan National Airport when it collided with the military helicopter, which was on a training mission with three soldiers on board.

By 8 a.m. Thursday, emergency crews had recovered 28 bodies from the river.

Washington, D.C. Fire Chief John Donnelly announced Thursday that all individuals aboard both aircraft had perished.

“We are now at the point where we are switching from a rescue operation to a recovery operation,” he stated. “We don’t believe there are any survivors.”

Donnelly added, “We will continue to work to find all the bodies and collect them and reunite them with their loved ones,” as reported by NBC.

Earlier, Donnelly noted that approximately 300 first responders had been searching for survivors while retrieving wreckage, personal belongings, and remains from the water.

According to the Federal Aviation Administration, the crash occurred around 9 p.m. as the jet neared the airport, WTOP reported.

Flight tracking data indicated that Flight 5342, a Bombardier CRJ-701 twin-engine jet, was descending at 400 feet and traveling at roughly 140 mph when it suddenly dropped.

Moments before the collision, an air traffic controller advised the helicopter to “pass behind the CRJ” and asked if it had visual contact with the jet.

Seconds later, impact occurred.

NBC reported that the aircraft broke into two pieces upon being struck by the helicopter.

“It was probably out in the middle of the river. I just saw a fireball, and then it was just gone,” an audio transmission from the airport described.

The Black Hawk helicopter was assigned to Bravo Company, 12th Aviation Battalion, stationed at Davison Army Airfield in Fort Belvoir, Virginia.

Among those on board the ill-fated flight were elite American figure skaters, U.S. Figure Skating confirmed. Two Russian champion skaters were also among the victims.