First federal lawsuit filed over DC plane crash

(ABC NEWS) — Family members of those killed on American Airlines Flight 5342 announced the first federal lawsuit filed Wednesday over the January midair collision between a regional jet and a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter near Washington Reagan National Airport.

The lawsuit was filed against American Airlines, PSA Airlines — a regional carrier operating the flight for American Airlines — and the Army and the Federal Aviation Administration.

Rachel Crafton, whose husband Casey was killed in the collision, said in a statement: “Because of systematic failures and reckless disregard for safety, his life, along with 66 others, was taken. Casey was betrayed by this system he trusted — we all were. As his wife, I cannot stand by and allow his life to be lost in vain.”

All 67 people on board Flight 5342 and the helicopter were killed when they collided as the jet approached Reagan National, marking the nation’s first major commercial airline crash since 2009.