6 With Massachusetts Figure Skating Ties Killed in D.C. Plane Crash
A deadly crash between an American Airlines plane and a military helicopter near Washington, D.C. killed 14 U.S. Figure Skating team members. The plane plunged into the Potomac River at…
ARLINGTON, VIRGINIA – JANUARY 30: American Airlines regional jets park at the Reagan National Airport as the investigation continues into the crash of an American Airlines plane on the Potomac River after the plane crashed last night on approach to Reagan National Airport on January 30, 2025 in Arlington, Virginia. The American Airlines flight from Wichita, Kansas collided in midair with a military helicopter while approaching Ronald Reagan National Airport. According to reports, there were no survivors among the 67 people on both aircraft. (Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
A deadly crash between an American Airlines plane and a military helicopter near Washington, D.C. killed 14 U.S. Figure Skating team members. The plane plunged into the Potomac River at 8:48 p.m. as it was coming in to land at Reagan National Airport on Wednesday night.
The accident killed six skaters from the Skating Club of Boston. They were coming back from a National Development Camp in Wichita, Kansas, when the tragedy happened.
Among those lost were skating champions Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov. The accomplished pair, who won the 1994 world title and competed in two Winter Olympics, are survived by their son Maxim - a current U.S. competitor who wasn't on the flight.
Skater Jinna Han and her mother, Jin Han, were also killed, along with skater Spencer Lane and his mother Christine Lane, the Skating Club of Boston said.
"Skating is a very close and tight-knit community. These kids and their parents -- they are here at our skating facility in Norwood six, sometimes seven days a week. It is a close, tight bond, and I think for all of us, we have lost family," said Doug Zeghibe, CEO and executive director of the Skating Club of Boston, to WCVB.
After finding no survivors, rescue teams moved to recovery operations. Teams of divers, fireboats, and helicopters searched the murky waters.
This isn't the first tragedy for the Massachusetts club's 800-plus members. In 1961, a crash in Brussels killed 18 team members as they traveled to world championships in Prague.
At their Norwood facility, Shishkova and Naumov created the "Tomorrow's Champions" program. Young skaters learned under their unique Russian teaching style.
While the Federal Aviation Administration looks into what caused the crash, Reagan National Airport remains closed.
Since it opened in the early 1900s, the Skating Club of Boston has taught countless skaters. Today, 2,000 students - from kids to adults - train at this historic skating center each year.
