A fatal crash on 29 January took down a commercial jet and a US military helicopter on a training flight near Washington DC’s Reagan National airport. Authorities have said all 64 people on the American Airlines flight were presumed dead as well as three more on the army helicopter, making the incident the deadliest US air tragedy since 2001.
Figure skaters
- Shishkova and Naumov, who were married to each other, won the world championships in pairs figure skating in 1994 and had reportedly lived in the US since at least 1998, where they trained young ice skaters.
- Vadim Naumov and Evgenia Shishkova. Photograph: AP
- Inna Volyanskaya. Photograph: Thieme, Wolfgang/Bundesarchiv
- Inna Volyanskaya, 59, was a skating coach at the Ashburn Ice House in Virginia.
- “She was a figuring skating coach,” Ross Lansel, her ex-husband, told NCB reporters, and an “amazing skater”.
- “It’s going to be so hard without her. She meant a lot to these kids. It’s devastating for me to think about the kids without her.”
- Spencer Lane, a 16-year-old figure skater from Barrington, Rhode Island, posted photos and videos from the camp on his Instagram account hours before the crash. He had been aboard the plane alongside his mother, Christine Lane.
- Douglas Lane, his father and Christine’s husband, told WPRI that his son, who was adopted along with his brother Milo from South Korea, was a “force of nature”.
- “In his home club in Boston, he was just loved by everyone from the adults running to club to the smallest skaters, to the people that are competing for a shot at the Olympics, they all just adored him,” he said.
- The Lane family. Photograph: Courtesy Lane family
- He also praised his wife’s creativity and interest in graphic design and photography.
- “For Christine, just the amount of people from the community in Rhode Island I’ve already heard from today that she’s touched,” he said. “Whether it was screening them to adopt the dog that they loved or helping them with a summer project or whatever, she was just one of those people that could just kind of plug in anywhere, connect with people and build a real bond.”
- Jinna Han, a 13-year-old figure skater from Mansfield, was among the victims, alongside her mother, Jin Han.
- Jinna Han. Photograph: The Skating Club of Boston photograph/AP
- Doug Zeghibe, CEO and executive director of the Skating Club of Boston, described the young skater as “a wonderful kid” with “wonderful parents” to USA Today.
- “Great athlete, great competitor,” Zeghibe added. “Loved by all.”
- Sisters Everly and Lydia Livingston, ages 14 and 11, are confirmed to have been aboard the plane alongside their parents, Donna and Peter. Both sisters had been young figure skaters.
- “Lydia, 11, was known for her vivacious personality and strong desire to improve on the ice – no matter the critique,” the Skating Lesson wrote on Instagram.
- “Everly, 14, was shy and reserved compared to her sister, yet came alive on the ice – becoming a sectional champion at the intermediate and juvenile levels,” they added.
- Sean Kay was a young student of coach Alexandr “Sasha” Kirsanov. He was dance partners with Angela Yang on the ice.
- Sean is survived by his father and three siblings.
- Sean Kay and Angela Yang. Photograph: US Figure Skating/Youtube
- Angela Yang was a young figure skater, coached by Kirsanov and dance partners with Sean Kay.
- The Skating Lesson wrote on Instagram that the pair were “undefeated in juvenile ice dance this season. The talented team had big plans for their future”.
- Angela is survived by her father and two siblings.
- Franco Aparicio of Washington earned a trip to the developmental camp by placing fourth in the intermediate division at Eastern Sectionals, according to the Skating Lesson. This was his second year earning a spot at the camp. He is survived by his mother and two siblings.
- Brielle Magdalena Beyer, 12, was traveling on the plane alongside her mother Justyna. Brielle was part of the Skating Club of Northern Virginia.
- Andy Beyer, Justyna’s husband and Brielle’s dad, told NBC that his wife was his soulmate and that his daughter “was someone who was just meant to sparkle”.
- “She had a beautiful voice, she used to fill the house with just whatever was on her mind. Taylor Swift, and lately, Wicked,” he said.
- Cory Haynos, a teenage skater from northern Virginia, and his parents, Stephanie and Roger, were also onboard the flight, relatives have said in interviews and social-media posts.
- “Cory was an amazing skater,” Matthew Alan LaRavier, Roger’s cousin, wrote in a Facebook post. “We all were expecting Cory to represent our country in the US Olympics in the future.”
- Cory Haynos. Photograph: U.S. Figure Skating/Youtube
Other passenger victims
- Michael Stovall, 40, was a member of the Steamfitter’s Union. He was a resident of Maryland who went by Mikey.
- Stovall was part of a group of seven friends from the DC area who traveled to Kansas to hunt waterfowl. The other six who had perished in the crash are Jesse Pitcher, 30; Steve Johnson, 45; Alexander Huffman, 34; Charles McDaniel, 44; Jonathan Boyd, 40 and Tommy Clagget, 38.
- Jesse Pitcher. Photograph: Facebook
- Jessie Pitcher, who owned a plumbing business, was part of the hunting group. He was described in Facebook posts by those close to him as a “true friend”.
- Grace Maxwell, 20, had been returning home from Wichita to attend her grandmother’s funeral. She was studying biomedical engineering at Cedarville University in Ohio.
- “Grace was a quiet person with a keen interest in helping others through engineering,” said Dr Tim Norman, who served as her secondary adviser, to WBNS.
- Grace Maxwell. Photograph: Cedarville University
- Wendy Shaffer was a mother to two children, ages three and one. Her husband, Nate Schaffer, described her as “the best wife, mother, and friend that anyone could ever hope for”.
- Wendy Shaffer and family. Photograph: GoFundme
- Kiah Duggins was a professor at the Howard University School of Law. Her death was confirmed in a statement by the university.
- In her job, she was known to challenge “unconstitutional policing and money bail practices in Tennessee, Texas and Washington DC”. She also previously worked with the ACLU of Northern California and challenged “police misconduct and other harms of the criminal legal system”.
- Kiah Duggins Photograph: Civil Rights Corp
- Elizabeth Keys. Photograph: Wilkinson Stekloff.
- Elizabeth Keys was an attorney who was killed on her birthday in the crash. She had just turned 33 when she was killed in the collision, her partner, David Seidman, said. The pair had met at Georgetown Law School.
- Lori Schrock, 56, and her husband, Robert “Bob” Schrock, 58, are among those who died in the midair collision. The Schrocks lived in Kiowa, Kansas, about 90 miles south-west of Wichita near the Oklahoma border, where Bob was a farmer.
- Grace Cantrell, a childhood friend of Bob and Lori Schrock’s daughter, Ellie, told NBC News she was heartbroken by their loss, calling the pair “gifts from God”.
- Sarah Lee Best. Photograph: Wilkinson Stekloff
- Sarah Lee Best was an associate at the Wilkinson Stekloff law firm in Washington DC. She was married to her husband of almost 10 years, Daniel Solomon. The couple had first met at Vanderbilt University in Nashville. Solomon said they had been planning to finally take their honeymoon this May in Hawaii, where Sarah was born, to celebrate what would have been their 10th anniversary.
- Col Pergentino Malabed Jr was a Philippine police official who was in the US to inspect equipment for the national police. His death is a “profound loss”, police spokesperson Col Randulf Tuaño said to Newsweek, praising his dedication and integrity.
- Vikesh Patel was an employee for GE Aerospace, an American aircraft engine supplier. He is remembered as a “cherished” colleague by Larry Culp, the company’s chair and CEO.
- “This is a tragedy not only for our industry, but also for the GE Aerospace team,” the company said on X. According to his LinkedIn, Patel has worked at GE Aerospace for over 11 years.
- Vikesh Patel. Photograph: Linkedin
Flight crew victims
- Captain Jonathan Campos, 34, was the pilot of the plane. His aunt, Beverly Lane, shared with the New York Times that her nephew had wanted to be a pilot since he was three years old.
- “I think he wanted to be free, and be able to fly and soar like a bird,” Lane said.
- Sam Lilley was the other pilot of the plane. His father, Timothy Lilley, wrote on Facebook: “I was so proud when Sam became a pilot. Now it hurts so bad I can’t even cry myself to sleep.” He shared that his son was engaged to be married in the fall.
- “It is so devastating to lose someone that is loved so much,” he added.
- Sam Lilley. Photograph: Tim Lilley/Facebook
- Ian Epstein was a flight attendant for American Airlines. His death was confirmed by his wife, Debi Epstein.
- “It is with a very heavy heart and extreme sadness that myself along with our children Hannah Epstein and Joanna Epstein … inform you that Ian Epstein was one of the flight attendants on American Airlines Flight 5342 that collided last night when they were landing in DC,” Debi Epstein wrote on Facebook. “Please pray for Ian and our family as we travel to DC.”
- Danasia Brown Elder was a flight attendant working on the flight. Several of her friends have posted tribute messages to her on social media, describing her as a “beautiful spirit”.
- Danasia Brown Elder. Photograph: GoFundme
Helicopter victims
- Ryan O’Hara was the helicopter’s crew chief. He is survived by his wife and one-year-old son.
- “Ryan is fondly remembered as a guy who would fix things around the ROTC gym as well as a vital member of the Rifle Team,” Parkview high school, where he graduated, wrote in a statement.
- Staff Sgt. Ryan Austin O’Hara, 28, of Lilburn, Georgia was confirmed to have been onboard the helicopter.
- “Our deepest condolences go out to all the families and friends impacted during this tragedy, and we will support them through this difficult time. Our top priority is to assist in the recovery efforts, while fully cooperating with… investigative agencies to determine the cause of this tragic incident,” the US Army wrote in a statement.
- The name of the third Soldier is currently being withheld at the request of the family.
