U.S. & Russian Figure Skaters Among Those Presumed Dead In American Airlines D.C. Crash

Officials have revealed they believe that no one has survived the midair collision of an American Airlines passenger jet and a U.S. Army Helicopter which occurred late Wednesday night near Reagan Washington National Airport. On Thursday, Jan. 30, D.C. Mayor Mauriel Bowser held a morning press conference along with newly sworn in Dept. of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, D.C. Fire Chief John Donnelly, American Airlines CEO Robert Isom, local senators, and more in which they shared that the rescue operation has turned into a recovery operation, adding that at least 28 bodies have been recovered from the Potomac River so far. American figure skaters were on board the flight, according to U.S. Figure Skating. In a statement, the organization said in part, “U.S. Figure Skating can confirm that several members of our skating community were sadly aboard American Airlines Flight 5342, which collided with a helicopter yesterday evening in Washington DC. These athletes, coaches, and family members were returning home from the National Development Camp held in conjunction with the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Wichita, Kansas. We are devastated by this unspeakable tragedy and hold the victims’ families closely in our hearts.” Russian state news agencies also reported that Russian world champion figure skaters and married couple Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov were among the passengers on the flight, who are now all presumed dead. There were reportedly 64 people on the American Eagle civilian jet, whose flight route was from Wichita Kansas to D.C, plus three people onboard the Black Hawk helicopter. Officials have not released the names of victims yet, though the Skating Club of Boston shared that they lost two coaches, two young skaters, and their mothers, identifying them as Spencer Lane, Christine Lane, Jinna Han, and Jin Han. The organization also confirmed coaches Vadim Naumov and Evgenia Shishkova were on board. The two aircraft crashed in the Potomac River.