The figure skaters from the United States and Russia were aboard the American Airlines flight that crashed Wednesday night into the Potomac River in Washington, D. C. , after colliding with an Army helicopter.
The American artistic skating, the organization that is the national game director, showed that the passengers of the plane included several of its members, who had attended a prestigious camp for rookie and intermediate skaters Wichita, in Kansas, where the Flight has taken the flight has taken off.
“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,” U.S. Figure Skating said in a statement. “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.”
During a press conference Thursday, Wichita Mayor Lily Wu said “it was an honor” for her city to welcome the artistic skating championship for the first time.
“We were very excited to have the opportunity to host the national championship,” Wu told reporters. “Even yesterday, other people told me how glorious the last few days have been with other people coming to our network to watch or participate. “
Wichita officials expect more data on the accident, adding main points of the Figure Skate of the US Pyrve more main points on Wednesday.
None of the American skaters, their coaches or family members have been officially identified, but the Skating Club of Boston said two young skaters, their mothers and two coaches were among the passengers, CBS News Boston reported. In a statement, Doug Zeghibe, the skating club’s CEO and executive director, identified club members on the plane as Jinna Han, Jin Han, Spencer Lane, Christine Lane, Vadim Naumov and Evgenia Shishkova.
Shishkova and Naumov are Russian-born figure skaters and former world champions who coached at the Skating Club of Boston, the club said. They were on the plane along with other Russian citizens, the country’s state-run news agency TASS reported, citing an unnamed source and government official.
“The bad news came here from Washington today. We regret and explicit our condolences to the families and friends who have lost [those who enjoy] and the Russian citizens among those who were killed in the tragedy of aviation,” said the spokesman of the Russian presidential elections Dmitry Peskov a loss of press, according to Tass.
American Eagle Flight No. 5342, a passenger jet operated by PSA Airlines and owned by American, collided in midair with a Black Hawk helicopter near its intended landing site at Reagan National Airport, causing both to subsequently crash into the Potomac River below. The plane carried 60 passengers and four crew members, and three soldiers were aboard the helicopter, officials said. Based at Fort Belvoir in Virginia, the helicopter was on a training flight when it struck the aircraft.
At least 28 bodies had been recovered from the river by 8 a.m. ET Thursday, D.C. Fire and EMS Chief John Donnelly told reporters. Donnelly added: “We don’t believe there are any survivors.”
An investigation into the collision is underway. A law enforcement source familiar with the investigation told CBS News that it was directed to “why the helicopter was flying there and at altitude at the time. “