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ALEXANDRIA, Va - The City of Alexandria will unveil its memorial to the 67 people killed in the January 2025 midair collision over the Potomac River on June 1 at Rivergate City Park, the city announced Monday.
The ceremony, hosted with Rep. Don Beyer, D-Virginia, is scheduled for 5:30 to 7 p.m. at the park, at 2 Montgomery St. along the Potomac. It is free and open to the public.
The memorial will include a commemorative bench, engraved bricks, a descriptive sign and trees, set in the northeastern portion of the park. The city said the design was shaped in partnership with the families and loved ones of those who died.
"Their voices helped shape how this space honors those who were lost," the city said.
When Beyer and Mayor Alyia Gaskins announced the project on the one-year anniversary of the crash in January, they did not give a timeline for installation. Their announcement described a bench and plaques bearing the names of all 67 victims.
"Alexandria will always hold those we lost on Flight 5342 and PAT 25 — and their loved ones — in our hearts, and it is my hope that this memorial will fulfill that promise," Gaskins said in January.
The memorial will commemorate the 60 passengers and four crew members aboard American Airlines Flight 5342, which was inbound from Wichita, Kan., and the three U.S. Army crew members aboard the PAT 25 Black Hawk helicopter. All 67 died when the two aircraft collided on approach to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport on Jan. 29, 2025.
Wreckage from the crash landed in the Potomac just off Alexandria's shoreline, and city first responders were among those who rushed to the scene.
Beyer, whose Northern Virginia district includes Reagan National, has been a leading congressional voice on the response.
Rivergate City Park is part of a system of linear parks along Alexandria's waterfront. The Rivergate Owners Association owns the majority of the park, with permanent public access to the waterfront area.
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