D.C. Plane Crash: U.S. And Russian World Figure Skating Champions On Board As Search for Victims Continue
A tragedy has taken place after an American Airlines flight collided mid-air with a Black Hawk military helicopter over Washington D.C. in a freak accident, prompting a rigorous rescue mission.
The AA flight 5342 — a CRJ 700 regional jet — traveling from Wichita, Kansas, crashed into the U.S. Army helicopter UH-60 out of Fort Belvoir, Virginia, in a freak collision Wednesday night, around 9 p.m., per the New York Post.
According to the timeline report presented by the media outlet, air traffic control received confirmation from the army jet pilot that he had the "CRJ in sight" on runway 33, however, maintained that he would attempt to fly out of the plane's path — which was unsuccessful.
It was reported that 300 first responders rushed to the tragic accident at Ronald Reagan National Airport, describing conditions as dark, cold, and windy amid attempts to conduct a "rescue operation" hours after the collision.
The flight — which included 60 passengers and four crew members — was carrying elite competitive U.S. figure skating athletes, as well as World Champion Russian pair skaters Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov, per Russian news announcements.
U.S. figure skating gave a statement regarding the tragic accident, saying, "Athletes, coaches and family members were returning home from the National Development Camp held in conjunction with the US Figure Skating Championships."
"We are devastated by this unspeakable tragedy and hold the victims' families closely in our hearts," the skating organization added. "We will continue to monitor the situation and will release more information as it becomes available."
It is unclear exactly how many American figure skaters were aboard the commercial flight and USFS has yet to confirm skater's identities.
One skater in particular happened to document his journey, in addition to confirming that he boarded a flight departing ICT airport in Wichita en route to DCA airport in Washington D.C.
In a celebratory post, @spencerskates26 reflected on his excitement for Nationals after attending a skating development camp — his dream since childhood. He also thanked athletes, friends, and his training coaches.
"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. I learned so much new information that i can apply to my everyday life, and met so many amazing people!" he wrote.
"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," he concluded.
The tragedy comes years after Americans were rattled by an airplane crash stemming back to February 1961, carrying 18 members of the U.S. figure skating team. The commercial craft headed to a competition in Prague crashed near the Brussels airport, killing everyone on board, per Today.
Authorities reported that Sabena Flight 548 likely crashed due to a mechanical failure, killing 73 people in total.
"At 12 years old, it's just hard to get your head wrapped around what was happening. It was horrible to have it just wiped out," legendary Olympic Gold medalist Peggy Flemming told Today in 2021.
27 bodies have reportedly been recovered from the Potomac River as of Thursday morning. Officials have reported that there are "likely" no survivors.
