President Trump on Thursday morning spoke from the White House about the tragic air crash the previous night in which all of the passengers and crew members from the commercial passenger jet and military helicopter involved died, saying, "as a nation we grieve." 

Trump also said the Federal Aviation Administration, National Transportation and Safety Board and the U.S. military will carry out a "systematic and comprehensive investigation."

"We'll get to the bottom of it," he also said.

In addition, Trump said he is appointing Christoper Rocheleau as acting FAA administrator. Rocheleau is a 22-year veteran of the agency.

He also suggested one factor that might have contributed to the crash was unqualified air traffic controllers and the FAA's diversity hiring practices. 

"I have common sense, and most people don't," Trump said in response to a reporter's question about why he thinks diversity hiring was a factor. The president also the controllers must be "at the highest level of genius."

Officials said Thursday morning before Trump spoke that searchers had recovered 27 bodies from the American Airlines flight that collided overnight with a military helicopter and plunged into the Potomac River along Washington, D.C.

They also said one body from the helicopter was recovered and that the emergency operation has moved from a search to a recovery effort. They also said nobody has been rescued from the crash.

Officials spoke at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, where American Eagle Flight 5342, which departed from Wichita, Kansas, on Wednesday evening was set to land. The crash occurred at 8:48 p.m. local time. 

The airport remains closed to flights as of Thursday morning. The accident appears to be the deadliest U.S. air crash in nearly 24 years.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the plane was found in three sections in waist-deep water in the Potomac. 

He said said the crash occurred on a "clear night" and that the flight patterns for both craft were standard.