We are now at the point where we are switching from a rescue operation to a recovery operation,” the DC fire chief said.

The U.S. Army unit involved in the overnight collision with a passenger jet near Washington D.C. has been placed on an operational pause, two U.S. officials told Reuters on Thursday, meaning helicopters from that unit will not be flying for the time being.

All 64 people aboard an American Airlines jet that collided with an Army helicopter were feared dead in what was likely to be the worst U.S. aviation disaster in almost a quarter century, officials said Thursday.