Unauthorised airport footage: Arrests made in deadly crash leak
American media reports that authorities have detained two airport employees in Washington. The reason? They allegedly leaked recordings of the crash involving an American Airlines plane and a military helicopter to CNN journalists. The authorities claim that the footage comes from airport surveillance. The station reported on Friday that it was taken with smartphones.
The reverberations of the crash involving the passenger plane from American Airlines and the Black Hawk helicopter continue to surface. A total of 67 people perished in the tragic collision, including a Polish woman and her daughter. New recordings from the crash continue to appear online.
Authorities are dealing with the issue of two videos presented by CNN. Investigators determined that the recordings came from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport surveillance. Two airport employees have been detained.
According to ABC News, Mohamed Lamine Mbengue, 21, from Rockville, Maryland, and Jonathan Savoy, 45, of Upper Marlboro, Maryland, were accused of making unauthorised backups of the recordings and disclosing them. The recordings were reportedly handed over to journalists. After being questioned in court, the men were released home.
The station reported on Friday that the recordings were made using mobile phones. Airport authorities have not commented on the employees' detention at this time.
What does the disclosed footage show?
CNN published video materials that show how the tragedy occurred. They depict the Black Hawk helicopter approaching from the left while the Bombardier CRJ-700 aircraft heads towards the airport.
Subsequently, the Black Hawk begins to approach the small passenger plane, leading to a collision. Both aircraft plummet into the Potomac River.
