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.

Officials said the bodies of several victims remain in the plane's fuselage and their "dignified" removal is a main priority.

More than 30 bodies have been recovered, two sources told NBC News, and a frantic search and rescue mission to find crash victims in the icy Potomac river remains underway.