Who Was Onboard American Airlines Flight 5342?
Among the 60 passengers were 14 American figure skaters, coaches and family members who were at a camp in Wichita, Kan., according to U.S. Figure Skating.
“These athletes, coaches, and family members were returning home from the National Development Camp held in conjunction with the U.S. Figure Skating Championships,” the governing body shared in a statement obtained by NBC News. “We are devastated by this unspeakable tragedy and hold the victims’ families closely in our hearts.”
World champion Russian figure skating duo Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov, who wed in 1995, were also onboard, Russian state media confirmed.
“Bad news from Washington today,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters, per NBC News. “We grieve and console with the families and friends who lost those of our fellow citizens who died in this plane crash.”
Hamaad Raza, whose wife was also on the American Airlines flight, was waiting for her at the international airport.
“I’m just praying that somebody’s pulling her out of the river right now as we speak,” he told CBS affiliate WUSA9. “That’s all I can pray for. I’m just praying to God.”
A Cedarville University student, Grace Maxwell, was also onboard the flight after attending her grandfather’s funeral, the university said in a Jan. 31 press release.
