Less than 1 statute mile ( 1.6 km ) from the end of the runway , the airplane struck the 14th Street Bridge complex , shearing the tops off vehicles stuck in traffic before plunging through the 1-inch-thick ( 25 mm ) ice covering the Potomac River .
Less than 1 mile ( 1.6 km ) from the end of the runway , the airplane hit the 14th Street Bridge .