The night of January 29, 2025 will be one that Hamaad Raza, a Washington DC resident, will never forget. His wife, who was aboard American Airlines flight 5342 when it crashed into the Potomac River, was able to send him a final message before the disaster took her life.
In just 20 minutes, Raza went from receiving a message from his wife, to losing her forever, as her phone went dark as a consequence of the crash.
Highlights
- A man received a final message from his wife, 20 minutes before the American Airlines crash took her life.
- At least 28 bodies have been recovered so far; no survivors found.
- Investigation underway; tragedy deemed "absolutely preventable."
Raza’s life, as well as those of the relatives and loved ones of the 64 people aboard, changed forever. Now their only solace is to get hope of giving them a proper burial, but only 28 bodies have been recovered so far.
American Airlines flight 5342 collided with a US Army Black Hawk helicopter in Washington DC at around 9 pm local time yesterday (January 29). The plane had departed from Wichita, Kansas, and carried 60 passengers and four crew members.
A man shared the final message his wife, a passenger aboard the American Airlines flight that collided with a US Army helicopter, sent him before the disaster took her life
Image credits: Andrew Harnik/Getty Images
“She texted me that they were landing in 20 minutes,” Raza said, recalling how he tried to reply in vain, as his messages did not get delivered due to the tragedy.
“That's when I realized something might be up,” he stated.
Image credits: Andrew Harnik/Getty Images
As Bored Panda previously reported, among the victims were several members of the US figure skating community, including athletes, coaches, and family members returning from the National Development Camp held in Wichita.
Image credits: WUSA9
US Figure Skating confirmed the news in a statement: "Several members of our skating community were sadly aboard American Airlines Flight 5342, which collided with a helicopter yesterday evening in Washington, DC.”
“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 statement read.
Among the 60 passengers who presumably lost their lives in the crash were members of the US Figure Skating team, including two Russian champions
Image credits: Jeffry S.S./Pexels (Not the actual photo)
Among those confirmed to have been on the plane were Russian champions 55-year-old Vadim Naumov, and 52-year-old Evgenia Shishkova, who won the pairs figure skating prize in 1994. They were acting as coaches for the team at the development camp.
According to Reuters, former Soviet Union skater and Washington Figure Skating Club coach, Inna Volyanskaya, was also on board the plane.
Image credits: TheNewsDeskLive
The identities of the rest of the athletes aboard the aircraft have not been confirmed.
As per the US Figure Skating website, the development camp held in Kansas saw at least 150 up-and-coming skaters across various performance levels compete. Naumov and Shishkova’s team were among those who participated, but it’s unclear if they boarded the same plane as them.
Retrieval efforts are underway, with at least 28 bodies being confirmed as recovered so far. The Pentagon also launched an investigation into the incident
Image credits: WUSA9
According to the District of Columbia fire chief, John Donnelly, there were no survivors in either the plane or helicopter. It has been labeled as the "deadliest US air disaster in more than a decade” by Reuters.
“I’m just praying that somebody is pulling her out of the river right now as we speak,” Raza said to a local outlet, devastated. “I'm just praying to God.”
Donelly confirmed in a press conference today (January 30) that all efforts are focused on locating and retrieving as many bodies as possible, and delivering them to their families.
Image credits: NBC News
U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said both aircraft were flying standard flight patterns, and confirmed that there had been no breakdown in communications.
This is in line with audio clips released between the air traffic controller at Reagan International Airport and the Black Hawk helicopter.
The controller asked the military craft if they had “the CRJ in sight,” referring to the passenger jet. The helicopter was then told to “pass behind the CRJ,” to which they replied: “PAT25 has the aircraft in sight, maintaining visual separation.”
Image credits: 11Alive
“Everything was standard in the lead-up to the crash,” Duffy said, saying that the tragedy was “absolutely preventable.”
The Pentagon, on the other hand, said it had launched an investigation on the matter.
"This breaks my heart." Netizens sympathized with Raza's pain, wondering how they would react if they were in his shoes
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