Video: Flight radar shows moment when US plane, chopper collided in Washington

A footage of an air traffic control radar screen showing the flight radar view of an American Airlines plane colliding with a US military helicopter has gone viral on social media.

The flight radar shows how the US Army Black helicopter, carrying three Army personnel - with call sign PAT25 - hit the American Airlines flight 5342, which had 60 passengers and four crew members.

Following the collision, the plane and the chopper plunged into the Potomac River bordering the Ronald Reagan Washington Airport. All 67 people were feared killed in what could be the worst US aviation disaster in almost a quarter-century.

The midair collision occurred when the American Airlines flight (Flight 5342) coming from Wichita, Kansas, was approaching the runway of Ronald Reagan Washington Airport. The flight collided with the chopper engaged in a training exercise and both the aircraft plunged into the Potomac River bordering the airport.

Emergency personnel found the body of the plane upside down in three sections in the river and the wreckage of the helicopter.

The crash occurred in some of the most tightly controlled and monitored airspace in the world, just around five kilometres south of the White House and the Capitol.

Officials were yet to ascertain the reason behind the collision.

Investigators from the Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) were investigating the circumstances that led to the tragedy.

US President Donald Trump, who was briefed about the incident, questioned why the helicopter did not divert as the flight approached and asked why the air traffic controller issued those directions. He said the situation should have been avoided.

"The airplane was on a perfect and routine line of approach to the airport. The helicopter was going straight at the airplane for an extended period of time. It is a clear night and the lights on the plane were blazing. Why didn't the helicopter go up or down, or turn? Why didn't the control tower tell the helicopter what to do instead of asking if they saw the plane?" he posted on Truth Social.