Their plane struck an Army helicopter over the Potomac River only minutes before they were scheduled to land at Ronald Reagan National Airport, which is close to Washington, D.C.
The deaths of the three troops on the Black Hawk chopper and all 60 passengers and four crew members on American Eagle Flight 5342 were sealed in a horrific moment that was caught on camera and broadcast around the globe.
I don’t think we will locate any survivors at this time. Following a desperate but fruitless search for survivors of the Wednesday night collision, Fire Chief John Donnelly declared Thursday that Washington, D.C.
Stay tuned for real-time updates.
The flight originated in Wichita, Kansas, and carried over a dozen passengers, including those returning from a training camp after the 2025 U.S. Figure Skating Championships.
According to the Chinese Embassy in Washington, which cited early information, two Chinese nationals were also on board. The victims were not named by the embassy.
Victims included crew members
The three individuals on board the downed Black Hawk were not identified by the Pentagon, although Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth described them as a “fairly experienced crew.” According to two U.S. military officials, one of the crew members was female.
First Officer Sam Lilley’s stepmother told NBC News that he was on the aircraft, but the airline has not disclosed the identities of its personnel.
“Eventually,” Sheri Lilley stated, “we will want to tell his story.” “He was an amazing individual.
Carolyn Edwards, her cousin, verified that Danasia Brown, a flight attendant, was also killed.
According to Edwards, Brown’s trip was intended to be his final one before switching careers with American Airlines.
Robbie Epstein Bloom, Ian’s sister, verified that Ian was a flight attendant on the aircraft.
In a statement, Bloom added, “He loved being a flight attendant because he truly enjoyed traveling and meeting new people.” However, his family was his main love. He was a brother, a spouse, a parent, and a stepfather! He will be sincerely missed.
The memories of some of the other victims of the first commercial plane crash in the United States since 2009 started to surface as dawn broke Thursday and the rescue mission turned into a recovery effort.
Among the passengers were young figure skaters.
At The Skating Club of Boston in Norwood, Massachusetts, 16-year-old Spencer Lane and Jinna Han showed promise as skaters. Jin Han and Christine Lane, their mothers, were traveling with them.
Warwick Figure Skaters in Rhode Island, where Lane began his career, honored him on their Facebook page.
The part that said, “He was always a bright light at our rink,” “His passion for the sport was evident from the start. He was a pleasure to watch and was always thrilled to be on the ice.
Brielle Beyer, 12, and her mother, 42-year-old Justyna Magdalena Beyer, who resided in a Virginia suburb of Washington, were also killed. Brielle, a member of the Skating Club of Northern Virginia, needed to hone her skills, which is why they were in Wichita.
We’re devastated, Mariola Witkowska, Justyna Beyer’s sister, stated. We’re simply stunned.
She claimed that Brielle had been skating all of her life and that her mother was an avid skater as well.
According to Witkowska, her sister Brielle’s life revolved around ice skating.
Vadim Naumov and Evgenia Shishkova, who taught young skaters at the Boston skating club, were among those killed, according to Zeghibe.
In couples figure skating, the two took home a world championship in 1994. Additionally, they participated in two Olympic competitions, finishing fourth in Lillehammer, Norway, in 1994 and fifth in Albertville, France, in 1992.
However, Zeghibe stated that their pride and delight was their 24-year-old son, Maxim Naumov, who had taken an earlier trip home after competing in Wichita.
According to Zeghibe, Shishkova, who had been the club’s coach for more than 20 years, was too anxious to watch her son participate. Naumov was left to support his son as he finished in fourth position.