Three U.S. Army soldiers were onboard a BlackHawk helicopter that collided with a passenger jet near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, U.S. officials said on Wednesday.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth calls the deadly aircraft collision involving a Black Hawk and a civilian airliner "a tragedy" in a statement obtained exclusively by Fox News.

The Black Hawk helicopter that collided with a passenger jet in Washington on Wednesday was on a training flight along a route core to a seldom-discussed military mission to evacuate senior officials to safety in the event of an attack on the U.S., officials say.