American Airlines flight collides with helicopter in Washington DC

An American Airlines flight collided with a helicopter as it approached Washington DC's Ronald Reagan National Airport, officials say.

It came down in the Potomac River, officials said, and search and rescue boats have been deployed to the area.

The Federal Aviation Administration said the regional jet collided in midair with the helicopter as it was approaching the runway at the airport at around 21:00 EST (02:00 GMT) on Wednesday.

The plane was American Airlines Flight 5342 coming from Wichita, Kansas, according to the agency.

Takeoffs and landings have been halted at the airport as emergency personnel respond to the incident, the airport wrote in a post on X.

The Federal Aviation Administration said it was conducting an investigation into the crash.

This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly. Please refresh the page for the fullest version.

You can receive Breaking News on a smartphone or tablet via the BBC News App. You can also follow @BBCBreaking on X to get the latest alerts.