Tragedy on the Potomac: Fatal crash claims 71 lives in DC

- I am speaking to you in an hour of suffering for our country, - said Donald Trump. As he indicated, the American Airlines passenger plane collided with a Black Hawk military helicopter on approach to Ronald Reagan Airport.

- Both vehicles crashed and sank into the icy waters of the Potomac River. A true tragedy, - said the U.S. President.

He noted that the search operation lasted all night and continues. - Local, state, and federal military agencies, including the U.S. Coast Guard, did a phenomenal, swift job. They mobilized immediately, - he said.

- The work now is focused on searching for bodies. Unfortunately, no one survived, - he admitted.

Trump highlighted that there were people on the plane from outside the United States, including from Russia. He also addressed the families of the victims.

- We can only imagine the suffering you are going through. Our hearts cry with yours; our prayers are with you, - he said.

Trump then argued that the safety situation in the aviation system is much better thanks to his changes. - I changed Obama's standards from very weak to extraordinary. Only outstanding people had the right to qualify as air traffic controllers. It wasn't like that before I came. In 2016, I made this change very quickly, - he said.

- And then, when I stopped being president, Biden took over and changed it again to lower requirements than ever before. For me, safety comes first. Obama, Biden, the Democrats thought politics was more important, - he argued.

- We must have the brightest people. It doesn't matter what they look like, how they speak, who they are. The important things are intellect, talent, work. They must be talented. Naturally talented geniuses. We can't have normal people working there; they won't handle it. But we will restore faith in American air travel, - he said.

The Bombardier CRJ 700 passenger plane operated by American Airlines, serviced by PSA Airlines, flying from Wichita, collided on Wednesday evening at 19:00 GMT with a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter just before the runway of Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Arlington.

On board the Bombardier were 64 passengers and four crew members, while the U.S. Army press service reported that three soldiers were on the helicopter. All most likely perished.