NEWSAmerican Airlines Crash: U.S. Figure Skaters and Russian Championship Couple Onboard Plane as 'No Survivors' Pulled From Washington, D.C., River
An American Airlines plane collided with a military helicopter and crashed into the Potomac River on Wednesday night, January 29.
Passengers onboard the American Airlines flight that collided with a military helicopter in Washington, D.C., included U.S. figure skaters and a championship-winning Russian couple.
In a statement released after the Wednesday, January 29, crash, US Figure Skating revealed many "athletes, coaches and family members were returning home from the National Development Camp held in conjunction with the US Figure Skating Championships."
Officials do not believe there are any survivors of the fatal collision.
"We are devastated by this unspeakable tragedy and hold the victims’ families closely in our hearts," the message continued. "We will continue to monitor the situation and will release more information as it becomes available."
The commercial plane was flying from Wichita Dwight D. Eisenhower National Airport in Kansas to Ronald Reagan National Airport in Arlington, Va., when it collided in mid-air with a Black Hawk military helicopter, split in half and plummeted into the freezing cold Potomac River.
Several U.S. figure skaters and a Russian championship couple were onboard the flight.
While it's unclear at this time how many athletes were on the flight, the plane was carrying 60 passengers and four crew members. Meanwhile, there were three soldiers aboard the helicopter.
None of the U.S. figure skaters' identities have been confirmed yet, however, a young athlete named Spencer Lane appeared to be among the victims, as he posted an Instagram Story of a plane's wing with the caption "ICT [to] DCA."
Young figure skater Spencer Lane posted an eery photo of what appears to be the plane taking off ahead of its crash.
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Mere hours before the crash on Wednesday, Lane took to Instagram with a carousel of images highlighting his time at the figure skating event.
"I am so happy to have qualified for National Development Camp earlier in November, it has been my goal almost ever since I became aware that it was a thing," he captioned a post featuring photos and videos of his time on and off the ice in Kansas. "I learned so much new information that I can apply to my everyday life, and met so many amazing people!"
His caption continued: "Thank you so much @team.genia.vadim, @annehgoldbergbaldwin, and @skatingclubbos for supporting me in achieving my goal, and always pushing me to be the best I can be. Thank you @usfigureskating and the local organizing committee for making everything happen, and lastly, huge thank you to all the amazing friends, coaches, and faculty that I have met over the last week, it was such an amazing experience."
Famed Russian championship couple Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov were also believed to be onboard the American Airlines flight, according to Russian state news outlets.
Russian championship couple Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov were reportedly victims of the fatal crash.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov didn't specifically name the spouses, though he discussed the "bad news from Washington today" during a press conference.
"We grieve and console with the families and friends who lost those of our fellow citizens who died in this plane crash," he expressed. "Sad news is being confirmed."
The longtime lovers shared a social media update about their time at the camp, where they were supporting their son Maxim Naumov, 23. It's unclear if he was also onboard the same flight.
"Once again, Maxim made us all proud, getting on to the podium at Nationals after 7th place in the short. This beautiful and emotional performance is a result of a team work. Huge thanks to Serhii and Irina Vaypan and of course to Adam Blake for his wonderful choreography of a classic! Maxim has earned his place in the team of 4 Continents. 👏🏻👍🏻💪🏻😄🎊," the duo's post read.
