Additional Coverage:
The Army identified one of the soldiers killed in Wednesday’s midair collision near Reagan National Airport. Capt.
Rebecca Lobach, 28, was an aviation officer who had served since July 2019. She received several commendations, including the Army Commendation Medal and the Army Achievement Medal.
Lobach’s family released a statement, describing her as “a bright star,” kind, generous, brilliant, funny, ambitious, and strong.
A friend, 1st Lt. Samantha Brown, shared details of Lobach’s life.
Lobach, originally from Durham, North Carolina, enlisted in the North Carolina Army National Guard during college in December 2018. She played basketball at Sewanee: The University of the South before graduating with a biology degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2019.
Lobach participated in the Simultaneous Membership Program, allowing her to be involved in both ROTC and the National Guard. She also served as a White House social aide during the Biden administration. Brown said Lobach escorted Ralph Lauren during his Presidential Medal of Freedom ceremony last month.
The other soldiers on board were identified as Chief Warrant Officer 2 Andrew Eaves, 39, of Great Mills, Maryland, and Staff Sgt. Ryan Austin O’Hara, 28, of Lilburn, Georgia. O’Hara was the crew chief.
A law enforcement source confirmed that two bodies, a man and a woman, were recovered from the helicopter wreckage on Friday.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth stated the Black Hawk was on a routine training mission from Fort Belvoir when it collided with the American Airlines flight. The crash resulted in 67 fatalities. Hegseth explained the mission was a standard night flight retraining exercise.
The National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration are investigating the cause of the collision.