⏰ Plus: Tariffs tomorrow | Friday, January 31, 2025
| | | | | | | Presented By Amazon | | | | Axios PM | | By Mike Allen · Jan 31, 2025 | | Happy Friday! Today's newsletter, edited by Sam Baker, is 394 words, a 1½-min, read. Thanks to Sheryl Miller for copy editing. | | | | | | 1 big thing: DCA closes helicopter routes | | |  Data: FAA. Map: Axios Visuals The FAA indefinitely closed helicopter routes near Washington's Reagan National Airport as investigators begin to piece together the circumstances surrounding Wednesday's tragic crash. Route 4 — the route the helicopter was supposed to be flying — tracks along the eastern bank of the Potomac. Helicopters are supposed to stay at 200 feet when using it. - The Black Hawk involved in Wednesday's crash was flying at 300 feet and at least a half-mile off course, per the NYT.
📰 The latest: Officials said they've recovered 41 bodies so far and expect to be able to recover all 67. - The Army released the names of two of the three soldiers who were in the helicopter — Andrew Loyd Eaves, 39, who was one of the pilots, and Ryan Austin O'Hara, 28, who repaired Black Hawks and deployed to Afghanistan in 2017.
Brief bios of some of those lost. | | | | | | | 2. ✈️ "Black boxes" recovered | | | | NTSB investigators examine the cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder recovered from the American Airlines jet that crashed Wednesday night. Photo: NTSB/AP Officials recovered the so-called "black boxes" from the airplane in Wednesday's crash, but not from the helicopter. - There are two devices — one that records flight data and a cockpit voice recorder.
🟧 They're actually bright orange, not black, to make them easier to find amid wreckage. | | | | | | | A message from Amazon | | Meet Kathleen and Miguel: growing their small business on Amazon | | | | | | | About their business: "We started selling Lucy's Juices from our garage. Now we have a warehouse and 20 employees." Best part about selling in Amazon's store: "It doubled the size of our company." More than 60% of sales in Amazon's store come from independent sellers. Find out more. | | | | | | 3. Catch me up | | | | President Trump signs executive orders in the Oval Office today. Photo: Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images - 📦 The White House said it'll roll out 25% tariffs on imports from Mexico and Canada, alongside 10% tariffs on China, tomorrow. Go deeper.
- 🤠 Meta is in talks to reincorporate in Texas, The Wall Street Journal reports. There are no plans to move the corporate headquarters from the San Francisco Bay Area.
- 🧀 Chuck Todd is leaving NBC News after almost 20 years. "The only way to fix this information ecosystem is to stop whining ... and instead roll up our collective sleeves," the former "Meet the Press" host said in a note to colleagues. Go deeper with Axios' Kerry Flynn & Sara Fischer.
| | | | | | | 4. 🐢 1 for the road | | | | Photo: Jean-Philippe Ksiazek/AFP via Getty Images A baby albino red-bellied turtle on the back of an adult, in an enclosure at the Ferme aux Crocodiles in Pierrelatte, France. - The birth of an albino turtle of this species — which is native to Australia and New Guinea — is extremely rare.
| | | | | | | A message from Amazon | | Meet Edgar: head of business development at LA-based Lucy's Juices | | | | | | | Favorite Amazon service: "We struggled to break into physical stores and found Fulfillment by Amazon was the fastest way to get our products to customers." Fulfillment by Amazon costs 70% less on average than comparable two-day shipping options. Find out more. | | | | 📬 Please invite your friends to join PM. | | Your essential communications — to staff, clients and other stakeholders — can have the same style. Axios HQ, a powerful platform, will help you do it. | | | |