The bereaved father of the 28-year-old Pilot American Airlines calls for stricter regulations due to a devastating collision in Mirada near Washington, DC
Sam Lilley was the first American Airlines Flight 5342 officer when the US army Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk Helicopter collided with the plane, causing two aircraft to be dived to the Potomac River during the origin of the Ronald Reagan International Airport on January 29.
All 67 people on both aircraft were killed, making it the most deadly air disaster in the country since 2001.
“[Sam] He made a great deal of career, “Timothy Lilley, former Military pilot of helicopterssaid Fox News Digital. “He was great in his personal life, he should have been married.”
Who are the victims of the DC aircraft?
In this photo shared by Timothy Lilley, Lilley Sam Lilley, a Kopilot who failed to Fatal American Airlines Flight 5342, smiling from the pilot cab of the aircraft. (Timothy Lilley)
Timothy Lilley served for 20 years in the army flying Black Hawk helicopters – the same aircraft colliding with a plane flying his son – before piloting medical helicopters and later joined the regional airline.
All three parts of my world collided that night over the descendant.
In the swing of his son’s death, Timothy uses his experience Invite the legislators and military officials to make changes, promising that part of the legacy itself will be aviation security.
He now asks the army to stop flight operations at civilian airports, remodeling pilots and require that aircraft have an operating traffic system and a collision avoidance system (TCAS) while in the class B airspace.
The American Airlines 5342 wreck was drawn from the Potomac River near the Ronald Reagan National Airport on Monday, February 3, 2025, the plane collided with the Black Hawk Army helicopter on Wednesday, January 29, killing 67 people. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
Currently, military aircraft do not have to be equipped with TCA when flying in the class B airspace, which consists of the largest civilian airports in the country, according to Lilley.
“It is said, and the truth is that most of the air regulations are written in blood, “Lilley said.” This means that something terrible has to happen to make a change. “
Lilley plans to testify before the congress and said that military officials at a high level were sensitive to his proposals, running the path of the safety sky.
On January 30, 2025, the crew pulled out the wreckage of the US Flight 5342 Air Force Company in the Potomac River near Washington, DC. The plane was involved in a fatal collision with Black Hawk helicopter the US Army the previous night. (Leigh Green for Fox News Digital)
Lilley believes Samina’s passion for flying grew from viewing as a pilot.
After acquired a graduate from marketing and logistics from Georgia Southern UniversityI switched to the aviation. The flight training began in 2019, received his commercial license next year and became a flight instructor. Two years before the collision, he began flying for regional Avi -Company American Airlines, a dog.
“If he stayed long enough in the dog, he should have ended up in American Airlines,” Lilley said. “He wanted to be an international captain and flew 777 to Europe and Asia.”
In this photo shared by Timothy Lilley, Sam Lilley, a co -launched coast that has failed on Flat American Airlines Flight 5342, celebrates his career achievement. (Timothy Lilley)
Sam was also engaged to her longtime girlfriend Lydi, and the two planned to start a family. The day before his death, Samina’s mother went to a wedding place in the purchase of a married couple, and the ceremony was scheduled for autumn.
However, the Samini dreams were stopped when aircraft and helicopter collided, twisting in the ice Potomac on January 29.
In this photo shared by Timothy Lilley, Sam Lilley, a Kopilot who failed on Flat American Airlines Flight 5342, proposes to his girlfriend Lydia. (Timothy Lilley)
Timothy Lilley was in New York City To work at the time of the collision, they initially saw reports on the incident on the news.
“I realized that there was a plane crash, which, of course, caused my occupation,” Lilley said. “But the chance that she was single and a million.”
When Lilley realized that the plane was owned by a dog, he reached for alone, but he never heard, confirming unthinkable.
It was hearty, it was just a heart.
Lilley traged to the site of the tragedy and began to compile what caused the plane to collapse, but many of his questions were left unanswered.
Investigators are working to find data from a black helicopter box, which has suffered water damage during an effort to recovery. Audio footage from the aircraft itself confirmed that the pilots had tried to avoid influence.
“The crew had a verbal reaction,” said Bric Banning, a NTSB investigator in charge.
The data record holder within the aircraft shows “an aircraft that starts increasing its terrain,” Banning said. “The sounds of the impact were sound about one second later, followed by the end of the recording.”
SAT: Investigators search the wreckage of DC airline accidents
A complete investigation into traffic safety committees could take up to a year, but the authorities hope that they will have a preliminary report within 30 days. Investigators also investigate the possibility that the airport control tower is not fully employed at the time of the collision.
Until the investigation is concluded, the victims’ families can only speculate on a collision in which they killed their loved ones. Lilley, as a former Black Hawk pilot, who “flew hundreds of times” by the same Potomac with a route, believes he can offer a unique perspective.
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“There are hundreds of things that could go wrong there,” Lilley said. “Maybe both pilots suddenly lowered their heads, looking at the radio, maybe they thought it was a different aircraft, maybe they saw the lights on the ground and thought it was an aircraft, maybe they did an emergency training, and they were distracted from it.
Sam Lilley was a pilot of the American Airlines plane, colliding with Black Hawk helicopter near Washington, DC, January 29, 2025. (Timothy Lilley)
Despite the tragedy, Lilley finds peace among the families of other victims and pays tribute to his son.
Lilley told Fox News Digital that his local Georgian community He gathered around his family, and his company sent a private jet to transport himself -the loved one to the place of the collision.
“There were 67 people who lost their lives, and there were families who had new widows and new orphans and lost two children and Olympic hopes and high -caliber lawyers,” Lilley said. “Every person involved in this accident, I would like to be a friend – and in the black hawk and [airplane]. “
He also seeks ways to pay tribute to his son, including for the planning of air security and getting a tattoo in memory of herself.
Timothy Lilley shows a tattoo he received in honor of his son Sam Lilley, who failed to Fatal American Airlines Flight 5342. (Timothy Lilley)
PSA Airlines posthumously assigned alone with the title of Honorary Captain, saying in a statement That “the title reflects not only his technical expertise, but also the deep influence he had on our Airline family.”
American Airlines did not immediately respond to the Fox News Digital request for comment.
“It’s a tragedy, these lives ended before any of us were ready for it,” Lilley told Fox News Digital.
