Two workers at Metropolitan Washington Airports arrested after leaking video of deadly DC plane crash to CNN

Two employees at the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority have been arrested over leaked video of an American Airlines passenger jet colliding with an Army helicopter.

The plane, carrying 60 passengers and four crew members, was approaching  Reagan National Airport on Wednesday night when it was hit by a Black Hawk Army helicopter conducting a training flight.

Footage of the extraordinary incident quickly went viral, sparking frenzied conspiracy theories online. 

That video was leaked to CNN by two members of staff at the airport, authorities now say, according to ABC.

The duo have been charged with computer trespass for allegedly making the unauthorized copy from Airports Authority records. 

Washington DC’s airspace is notoriously congested and there have been mounting fears that a tragedy was on the horizon. 

Former House Transportation and Infrastructure Chair Peter DeFazio told Politico that lawmakers had ignored warnings in favor of adding more routes to make travel more convenient for them.

‘Every senator in particular wants a nonstop flight to and from wherever they live,’ he said. 

‘The airport said, ”Don’t do it.” And they did it. So they added to what DCA said is already an overly congested and over-capacity airport.’ 

Since 2000, an additional 60 flights have been added into the airport. 

Disturbing footage of Wednesday night’s crash raised questions about how it possibly could have occurred, given it was a relatively clear night and the plane was visible in the path of the helicopter.

The National Transportation Safety Board revealed that preliminary data from the Black Hawk helicopter and passenger jet showed conflicting readings about their altitudes at the time of the catastrophic collision.

Data from the passenger jet’s flight recorder showed its altitude as 325 feet, plus or minus 25 feet, when the crash happened Wednesday night. Data in the control tower, though, showed the Black Hawk helicopter at 200 feet at the time.

The 100-foot discrepancy is yet to be explained, but if the impact did occur at 325ft, the crash would have occurred well-above the maximum allowed altitude of 200ft for helicopters in the area.

Investigators hope to reconcile the altitude differences with data from the helicopter’s black box, which is taking more time to retrieve because it became waterlogged after it plunged into the Potomac River. They also said they plan to refine the tower data, which can be less reliable.

‘That’s what our job is, to figure that out,’ said NTSB member Todd Inman, who grew increasingly agitated with reporters’ questions seeking more information and clarity about the readings during a Saturday evening news conference.

Investigator in charge, Brice Banning, described the investigation as ‘complex’, noting: ‘There are a lot of pieces here. Our team is working hard to gather this data.’

Banning also discussed the last moments from the jet’s two black boxes, which captured sound in the cockpit and flight data.

‘The crew had a verbal reaction,’ he said, with the data recorder showing ‘the airplane beginning to increase its pitch. 

‘Sounds of impact were audible about one second later, followed by the end of the recording.’

First responders confirmed Sunday that 55 of the 67 victims of America’s deadliest crash since 2001 have been identified. 

This is a breaking news story. More to come.