President Donald Trump said he “‘didn’t have time’ to meet the families of the men, women and children who tragically died in the plane crash.”
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A police boat near the crash wreckage site in the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport on Jan. 30, 2025. (AP)
Claim that Trump said he ‘didn’t have time’ to meet plane collision victims families false
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- President Donald Trump told reporters he planned to meet with relatives of those who died in the midair collision between a passenger plane and a Black Hawk Army helicopter in the Washington, D.C., area.
When President Donald Trump touched down in New Orleans for the Super Bowl, he made history as the first sitting president to attend the NFL’s biggest game. But even before the Feb. 9 game at the Caesars Superdome, claims criticizing his attendance had spread online.
"Friendly reminder that Donald Trump will be the first sitting president to attend the Super Bowl," a Feb. 5 Threads post said. "YET ‘didn’t have time’ to meet the families of the men, women and children who tragically died in the plane crash."
The post is correct about Trump bucking tradition; presidents have typically not attended the Super Bowl in person. The winners are invited to the White House for a victory celebration. However, the claim that Trump said he "didn’t have time" to meet plane crash victims’ families isn’t accurate. In fact, he said the opposite.
The Threads post was flagged as part of Meta’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Meta, which owns Facebook, Threads and Instagram.)
A few U.S. plane crashes occurred in the days before the Super Bowl, but the Threads post is likely referring to the Jan. 29 midair collision of an American Airlines regional plane and Black Hawk Army helicopter over the Potomac River in the Washington, D.C. area, killing all 67 people aboard both aircrafts. Trump has made public comments about visiting the victims’ families.
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After the midair collision, the passenger plane and helicopter broke apart into the frigid Potomac River. Divers retrieved bodies and wreckage from both aircrafts from the river near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.
A reporter asked Trump Jan. 30 at the White House if he intended to visit the collision site. Trump responded: "I have a plan to visit, not the site. Because you tell me, what’s the site? The water? You want me to go swimming?"
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The reporter also asked if he planned to meet first responders. Trump said: "I don't have a plan to do that but I will be meeting with some people that were very badly hurt with their family member, obviously. I'll be meeting with some of the families."
We found no news reports about Trump meeting with victims’ families yet. Such meetings take planning and time to happen. While in New Orleans, Trump met victims, relatives and first responders of the New Year’s Day terror attack, which happened on the city’s famed Bourbon Street before his inauguration.
We rate the claim that Trump said he didn’t have time to meet victims' families of the Washington plane crash False.
PolitiFact Researcher Caryn Baird contributed to this report.
Our Sources
Threads post (archived link), Feb. 05, 2025
The Washington Post, Trump: ‘No plans’ on visiting site, will visit with victims, Jan. 30, 2025
The Independent, Trump won't visit Washington DC plane crash site because it's 'the water': 'You want me to go swimming?’, Jan. 30, 2025
Axios, Trump meets with terror attack families during Super Bowl visit, Feb. 9, 2025
Obama White House, The President Honors the 2015 NFL Super Bowl Champions: The New England Patriots, Apr. 23, 2015
Biden White House, President Biden Welcomes the Kansas City Chiefs to the White House, May 31, 2024
George Bush White House, President Welcomes Super Bowl Champion Pittsburgh Steelers to the White House, June 2, 2006
National Transportation Safety Board, Midair Collision PSA Airlines Bombardier CRJ700 Airplane and Sikorsky UH-60 Military Helicopter, Feb. 5, 2025
National Transportation Safety Board, Learjet 55 Medevac Crash, accessed Feb. 13, 2025
WPVI-TV/6abc, Northeast Philadelphia plane crash victims: What we know about those injured and killed, Feb. 11, 2025
WPVI-TV/6abc, Philadelphia plane crash latest: NTSB finishes on-site work, forensics investigation ongoing, Feb. 5, 2025
The Associated Press, Missing commuter plane found crashed on Alaska sea ice and all 10 aboard are dead, authorities say, Feb. 7, 2025
Fox News, Trump meets families of New Orleans terror attack victims, law enforcement officials ahead of Super Bowl LIX, Feb. 9, 2025
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Claim that Trump said he ‘didn’t have time’ to meet plane collision victims families false
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