Now, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will focus on retrieving the mangled helicopter, a crucial component in federal authorities' probe as they look to confirm data related to its altitude at the time of the collision,

An American Airlines regional jet collided with a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter on Jan. 29. Both aircraft plunged into the Potomac River near Reagan Airport.

The pieces of wreckage recovered Tuesday were lifted by a crane and placed onto a barge with other parts recovered from the flight that took off from Wichita, Kansas, for Washington's Reagan National Airport with 60 passengers and four crew members on board. One of the pieces recovered earlier in the day showed a portion of the American Eagle logo.