Hello and welcome to NewsHour from the BBC World Service, coming to you live from London with me, Sean Lay.

The collision between a civilian plane, a US Army helicopter in the sky over Washington, D.C. on Wednesday night,

resulted in 67 people dying in the sub-zero temperatures of the Potomac River.

At a White House news conference Thursday lunchtime, the U.S. President Donald Trump led reporters

in a moment of silence for the dead and then reflected the shock many in the United States

a feeling. This was a dark and excruciating night in our nation's capital and in our nation's history and a tragedy of terrible proportions.

As one nation, we grieve for every precious soul that has been taken from us so suddenly.

And we are a country of really we are in mourning.

This is really shaking a lot of people, including people,

very sadly from other nations who were on the flight.

For the family members back in Wichita, Kansas, here in Washington,

D.C. and throughout the United States and in Russia, whose loved ones were

aboard the passenger jet, we can only begin to imagine the agony that you're all feeling,

nothing worse. On behalf of the First Lady, myself, and 340 million Americans, our hearts

are shattered alongside yours, and our prayers are with you now.

And in the days to come, we'll be working very, very diligently in the days to come.

We're here for you to wipe away the tears and to offer you our devotion, our love and our support.

The President then gave his opinion on what may have caused the collision.

We must have only the highest standards for those who work in our aviation system. I changed

the Obama standards from very mediocre at best to extraordinary. And then when I left office

and Biden took over, he changed them back to lower than ever before. I put

safety first. Obama, Biden and the Democrats put policy first. President Trump was challenged

...