DC plane crash live updates: Investigators comb through wreckage for clues

President Donald Trump once again criticized the merits of the Federal Aviation Authority's air traffic controllers on Tuesday when asked by reporters about the qualifications of the team that works under Elon Musk within the Department of Government Efficiency.

“They work, actually, out of the White House," Trump said of the DOGE aides. "They're smart people, unlike what they do in the control towers, where we need smart people. We should use some of them in the control towers, where we were putting people that were actually intellectually deficient.”

The comments come after Trump has repeatedly attempted, without evidence, to lay blame for the midair collision in Washington, D.C., on the FAA's diversity, equity and inclusion hiring initiatives.

The National Air Traffic Controllers Association released a statement on Tuesday reaffirming its support of air traffic controllers in the United States.

“As we have stated before, all air traffic controllers – regardless of race or gender – are well-trained and highly skilled dedicated professionals who keep the national airspace system safe and maintain its efficiency on behalf of all Americans," it said.

"Becoming a Certified Professional Controller (CPC) is not an easy feat. It requires rigorous training, mastery of complex systems, and the ability to perform under immense pressure," the statement added.

"We have performed these duties while working short-staffed, often 6 days a week, 10 hours a day for years at a time, with outdated equipment and facilities that are in many cases more than 60 years old and long overdue to be replaced and modernized," NATCA said, before suggesting that the focus on its members should be redirected toward working to ensure that they have the staffing and infrastructure necessary to bolster aviation safety.

-ABC News' Ayesha Ali

Crews have recently recovered more pieces of the downed plane, including the right wing, the center fuselage, part of the left wing and the left fuselage, and significant parts of the forward cabin and the cockpit, the National Transportation Safety Board said Tuesday.

The latest information shows the Black Hawk helicopter was recorded at 300 feet high on the air traffic control display at the time of the collision, the NTSB said, noting that the data is rounded to the nearest 100 feet. The helicopter’s limit in that location is 200 feet.

NTSB said it’ll need to recover the helicopter to verify data. Crews plan to remove the Black Hawk from the Potomac River later this week, the NTSB said.

NTSB said its "investigators continue to transcribe the cockpit voice recorders for both aircraft" and that "synchronization work for the Black Hawk flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder is ongoing."

All 67 victims killed in the helicopter and plane collision have been recovered from the Potomac River, the Unified Command announced Tuesday. Sixty-six of the remains have been positively identified.

The Unified Command said its crews are still working to clear wreckage, including large pieces of the jet, from the river.

"Large lifts will continue through Tuesday evening, with unloading expected when environmental and tidal conditions allow on Wednesday," the Unified Command said. "Operations will then shift to recovering wreckage from the Black Hawk helicopter."

American Airlines CEO Robert Isom said President Donald Trump called him Monday night to offer condolences for the crew members, passengers and their loved ones.

Isom said in a letter to American Airlines employees on Tuesday that Trump "asked me to relay to all of you his personal appreciation for the work you are doing to support the families and his concern for the well-being of our entire team."

"President Trump also made clear that aviation safety is a priority for his Administration," he said. "We look forward to working with him on behalf of all our customers and team members in the name of safety."

The airline will observe a moment of silence Wednesday, marking one week since the crash.

-ABC News’ Ayesha Ali