The recent history of plane crashes in the US
Rescuers are desperately looking to find survivors after a passenger plane and helicopter collided in midair over Washington DC.
Commercial plane crashes are extraordinarily uncommon, especially in the United States.
The last mass casualty plane crash in the US was in 2009, where all 49 people on-board a flight crashed into a home in Buffalo, New York.
READ MORE: Passenger jet collides with Black Hawk helicopter
Everybody on board was killed when a plane crashed in 2009 near Buffalo, New York. Getty
A person inside the house was also killed.
The crash was blamed on the pilot mishandling warnings the plane was going to stall during landing.
In 2006, 49 people were killed when a pilot used an incorrect runway during takeoff in Lexington, Kentucky.
The runway was too short and the plane overran it and crashed.
And in November 2001, 265 people died when American Airlines Flight 587 crashed into a neighbourhood in Queens, New York.
WHAT WE KNOW: Washington DC plane crash
Flight 587 happened two months after the September 11 terrorist attacks that killed 2996 people.
Because of how close it was to September 11, it was initially feared to be an act of terror.
But air investigators concluded the likely cause was the first officer overreacting to turbulence by repeatedly moving the rudder.
And in January 2000, 88 people died when an Alaska Airlines flight lost control and crashed into the ocean.
The crash was blamed on a technical malfunction from a worn-down jackscrew.
Today's incident recalled the crash of an Air Florida flight that plummeted into the Potomac on January 13, 1982, that killed 78 people. That crash was attributed to bad weather.
DOWNLOAD THE 9NEWS APP: Stay across all the latest in breaking news, sport, politics and the weather via our news app and get notifications sent straight to your smartphone. Available on the Apple App Store and Google Play.
Share a tip-off, video or photo with us
