The midair collision Wednesday night between a regional American Airlines passenger jet and a Black Hawk military helicopter over the Potomac River near Washington, D.C., was "absolutely" preventable,

Sixty passengers and four crew members from the plane and three Black Hawk helicopter personnel are feared dead as a recovery mission is underway.

The FAA and NTSB have launched an investigation into how an American Airlines flight collided with a military helicopter over the Potomac River.