Reason US Army won't publicly identify Black Hawk pilot killed in American Airline plane collision

The US Army has released a statement on why it's only identifying two of three soldiers involved in the Blackhawk helicopter crash with an American Airlines plane.

On Wednesday (January 29), at 8.47pm ET, an American Airlines passenger plane - flight 5342 - and a US military helicopter collided mid-air over the Potomac River, close to the Ronald Reagan National airport in Washington DC.

All 64 passengers onboard the plane alongside the three onboard the helicopter are believed dead, however, one of the military personnel will not be publicly named.

The US Army took to its website on January 31 to release a statement on the tragedy, explaining the United States Army UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter crashed 'while performing a training mission near the Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport'.

The statement confirms 'the UH-60 helicopter from the 12th Aviation Battalion, Davison Army Airfield, Fort Belvoir, Va., collided in midair with an American Airlines Bombardier CRJ700 regional jet Flight 5342 at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport'.

There were three people onboard the helicopter at the time of the crash, the US Army naming two of them as Staff Sgt. Ryan Austin O'Hara and the other as Chief Warrant Officer 2 Andrew Loyd Eaves.

"Staff Sgt. Ryan Austin O’Hara, 28, of Lilburn, Georgia, is believed to be deceased pending positive identification," the statement continues.

"The remains of Chief Warrant Officer 2 Andrew Loyd Eaves, 39, of Great Mills, Maryland, have not yet been recovered, therefore is duty status-whereabouts unknown (DUSTWUN)."

Chief Warrant Officer 2 Andrew Loyd Eaves is one of the soldiers who was onboard the Blackhawk helicopter (The US Army)

The name of the third solider 'will not be released at this time,' the US Army notes, adding this is 'at the request of the family'. Although it adds: "That pilot is also DUSTWUN."

The incident remains under investigation with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and United States Army all involved.

The US Army's statement concludes: "The NTSB will lead the investigation. We are working with local officials and will provide any additional information once it becomes available."

Staff Sgt. Ryan Austin O'Hara is another soldier who was onboard the Blackhawk helicopter (The US Army)

Major General Trevor J. Bredenkamp, commander Joint Task Force - National Capital Region/ US Army Military District of Washington also said in a statement: "Our deepest condolences go out to all the families and friends impacted during this tragedy, and we will support them through this difficult time.

"Our top priority is to assist in the recovery efforts, while fully cooperating with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), and other investigative agencies to determine the cause of this tragic incident."

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