Thursday, January 30, 2025 - Russian figure skaters Yevgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov are reported to have been on board the American Airlines plane that crashed into a Black Hawk helicopter over Washington last night, Jan. 29.
Shishkova and Naumov, who were married, won the world
championship in pairs figure skating in 1994.
Russian state-run TASS news agency reported this morning,
Jan. 30, that they were on board the doomed flight, citing a source.
The couple's 23-year-old son Maxim, a figure skater
for Team USA, took part in the US Championships in Wichita in recent days,
gaining a podium position.
It is not yet clear if he was on the plane from Kansas with
his parents.
US figure skating has confirmed that several skaters,
coaches and their family members were on board the flight, and had been
returning home from the National Development Camp which is held in conjunction
with the national championships.
"We are devastated by this unspeakable tragedy and hold
the victims' families closely in our hearts. We will continue to monitor the
situation and will release more information as it becomes available," the
sport governing body said in a statement.
The regional passenger jet and a US Army helicopter crashed
into the Potomac River after a midair collision as the plane approached Reagan
Washington National Airport on Wednesday night, officials said.
The airline has confirmed that there were 60 passengers and
four crew members on Flight 5342 from Wichita, Kansas, to the capital when
the collision happened.
The plane is said to have split in two and is in around
seven feet of water, while the helicopter is upside down and is unstable,
according to the outlet.
Images captured at the scene show emergency officials on
boats around what appears to be part of the fuselage and a wing jutting out of
the river.
Federal Aviation Authority said that the jet, a Bombardier
CRJ700, collided with a Sikorsky H-60 Black Hawk helicopter while on approach
to Runway 33.
Defence officials have confirmed that the Black Hawk was an
Army chopper carrying three soldiers on a training flight.
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