An American Airlines plane carrying 60 passengers and four crew members collided with an Army Black Hawk helicopter outside Reagan National Airport near Washington, D.C. Wednesday evening. Three soldiers were onboard the helicopter and a massive search and rescue operation is now unfolding in the Potomac River.

The crash near Reagan National Airport has renewed questions about the airport's flight load, considering its small size, among other issues.

A multi-agency search and rescue operation is underway in the Potomac River after a small American Airlines aircraft collided with an Army helicopter near Reagan National Airport, authorities confirmed.

Deadly mid-air collision over Washington, D.C., reignites concerns over air traffic congestion and safety risks at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport

A jet carrying 60 passengers and four crew members collided Wednesday with an Army helicopter while landing at Ronald Reagan National Airport near Washington

A jet carrying 60 passengers and four crew members collided Wednesday with an Army helicopter while landing at Ronald Reagan National Airport near Washington, prompting a large search-and-rescue operation in the nearby Potomac River.

The Associated Press is providing live video of the scene of the plane crash near Washington’s Reagan Airport:

A passenger jet has collided with a helicopter while landing at Ronald Reagan National Airport near Washington.

A preliminary safety report from the Federal Aviation Administration reportedly found that air traffic control staffing was abnormally low at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport on the evening of Wednesday, Jan. 29, according to The New York Times, which obtained a copy of the report.

Some experts, politicians and airport managers have been warning of the risks posed by the crowded airspace at Reagan Washington National Airport.

DCA is one of the most demanding airports in the world. It also has what’s known as ‘helicopter alley’ with hundreds of police, military, news and rescue helicopters criss-crossing