Heartbroken skaters sobbed as they returned to ice hours after tween friends and coaches among 67 killed in plane crash
Hours after the unimaginable tragedy, heartbroken friends of young ice skaters killed in a Wednesday collision involving a military helicopter and a passenger plane grieved as they made their way back to a nearby rink.
The American Airlines flight and the Black Hawk chopper crashed in midair Wednesday night, sending both planes plummeting into the Potomac River, killing all 67 persons on board.
Devastating information about the passengers who perished on the journey from Wichita, Kansas, to Washington, DC, has surfaced as more than 40 remains have been recovered from the refrigerator waters.
Dozens of the fatalities were recognized as young figure skaters and their trainers returning from a skating development camp in Wichita.
While crews continue to search for bodies in the water barely 30 miles away, mourners have set up a monument at a skating rink in Arlington, Virginia, in remembrance of those who perished.
In an interview with The U.S. Sun, Lana Jones, a guest coach at Ashburn Ice House, discussed the tragedy’s devastating impact on the skating community in Washington, DC.
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Jones, 47, claimed that because she had to return to teach on the ice at 5:30 am on Thursday, just hours after the incident, which occurred just before 9 pm on Wednesday, she had “little time to process” the deadly crash.
Although coaching was challenging, I gave it my all, but the atmosphere was highly emotional,” Jones remarked.
“We were all in tears and attempting to console one another. As soon as I heard the news, I had to coach.
MOURNING COACH VOLYANSKAYA
Inna Volyanskaya was one of at least three skaters at Ashburn Ice Center who are thought to have died in the collision.
The facility employed Volyanskaya, a former Soviet pair skater, as a skating coach.
Jones, who has been a coach at SkateQuest, a local rink, for 17 years, said she had good recollections of Volyanskaya during her almost year-long stint as a guest instructor at Ashburn.
“She was a lovely person, she always greeted me when I saw her in the morning,” said Jones.
She talked softly and with kindness. Her generosity was greatly appreciated, and I will never forget it.
Her students worked hard under her, and I know they loved her.
The tragic flight also claimed the lives of 12-year-old Ashburn Ice House member Brielle Beyer and her mother Justyna Beyer, leaving a devastated family behind, according to ABC affiliate WJLA-TV.
Washington DC plane crash victims
On January 29, 2025, hundreds are thought to have died in a mid-air collision between American Airlines aircraft 5342 and a military chopper. Among the victims are:
- Captain Jonathan Campos, 34
- First Officer Samuel Lilley, 28
- Flight attendant Ian Epstein, 53
- Flight attendant Danasia Brown
- Spencer Lane, 16
- Christine Lane, 49
- Jinna Han, 13
- Jin Han
- Evgenia Shishkova, 52
- Vadim Naumov, 55
- Alexandr Kirsanov
- Angela Yang
- Sean Kay
- Peter Livingston
- Donna Smojice Livingston
- Everly Livingston, 14
- Alydia Livingston, 11
- Inna Volyanskaya
- Brielle Beyer, 12,
- Justyna Magdalena Beyer
- Olivia Eve Ter, 12
- Asra Hussain Raza, 26
- Michael Stovall, 40
- Jesse Pitcher, 30
- Elizabeth Anne Keys, 33
- Wendy Jo Shaffer
- Kiah Duggins
- Casey Crafton
- Lori Schrock, 56
- Robert Schrock, 58
- Vikesh Patel
- Grace Maxwell, 20
- Black Hawk Staff Sgt. Ryan O’Hara, 28
- Black Hawk Chief Warrant Officer 2 Andrew Eaves, 39
As she spoke with her mother, a 15-year-old girl who knew some of the victims broke down in tears and was urged to recite a few words in remembrance of her friends.
The teenager, who wished to remain anonymous, told The U.S. Sun, “I just couldn’t believe it.”
“I simply couldn’t digest it, therefore I didn’t think it was true. They are missed. They were my pals.
Regarding the other victims, she continued, “The instructors worked incredibly hard. We use this rink. I am now fifteen years old and have been skating here since I was three. All I’m doing is trying not to cry.
Wellesley Shomo, 41, a former Ashburn Ice Center ice hockey coach, told The U.S. Sun that he was deeply affected by the news.
It’s simply depressing. He remarked, “I recently learned that some of the local children were involved in the plane disaster.
“I grew up skating here, I coached here, so anytime you see any of the kids lose their future it s sad.”
Shomo recalled the skating instructors as “amazing coaches” and “great people.”
“One of the most robust communities you’ll encounter is the skate community. The gang is quite close-knit,” he remarked.
Despite not knowing any of the deceased, 22-year-old Rachel Eddinger paid her respects at the ice rink’s impromptu monument, which was composed of balloons and flowers.
Eddinger expressed her hope that the tragedy won’t deter people from enjoying figure skating after seeing them playing hockey on the rink.
“I think people should continue to skate, play hockey, figure skate,” she stated.
“Think about those that we lost but keep carrying on.”
About 25 miles from the crash scene, Skatequest, another nearby ice skating facility, has a monument with flowers and toy animals placed in memory of the victims.
‘MISS HER FOREVER’
Kiah Duggins, a civil rights lawyer who is thirty years old, is another casualty remembered in the terrible incident.
Duggins’ friend Ryland Michele told The U.S. Sun it is an absolutely tragic time for so many friends and families of the victims.
As soon as she walked into a room, Kiah could make everyone feel welcome,” Michele remarked.
Duggin, a Wichita native, was a two-time former Miss Kansas contestant who was set to become a professor at Howard University in the fall.
She was not only a beauty queen on the outside, most importantly she was beautiful to the core,” Michele said.
Her desire to make everyone feel loved and equal was one of her greatest traits.
Michele, who met Duggins via the Miss Kansas Organization, said the activist will be remembered as a “beautiful and kind woman.”
She had already built such a powerful legacy and had no intentions of slowing down, she said.
She added her pageant family will miss her forever.
I watched as DC rescue teams fought through torrential rain to find remains in icy waters
From Washington, DC, Senior Reporter Israel Salas-Rodriguezin:
Just a few feet behind me, along the Potomac River in the nation’s capital, a recovery effort is still in progress.
Searches for victims have continued as divers comb the seas.
The unimaginable event happened late Wednesday night when a Black Hawk army chopper struck an American Airlines flight carrying 64 passengers and crew members from Wichita, Kansas, as the commercial airplane was descending into Reagan National Airport.
The horrifying incident that was captured on camera rocked the nation.
Video showed the mid-air crash that illuminated the sky over Washington, DC, as the remains of both planes fell into the freezing Potomac River, killing everyone involved.
First responders have been removing debris and remains from the aircrafts from the icy waters around the clock.
An hour after Reagan National Airport reopened at 11 a.m. on Thursday, the U.S. Sun was at the airport.
As they waited to board their flight, a number of passengers who were carrying their bags told The U.S. Sun that the incident made them anxious.
One worried guy explained that ever since her AA from Arkansas was diverted to New York due to the collision, he and his sister have been messaging constantly throughout the night.
The reason of the collision that killed all 67 persons on board the AA flight and Army chopper is being investigated by the National Transportation Safety Board.
At least 41 bodies have been found thus far.
Famous ice skaters and aspiring Olympians, at least 14 of the passengers on the AA flight were on their way home after a national Figure Ice Skating competition in Wichita.
The sportsmen belonged to different ice rinks in Boston and the DMV area.
On Thursday night, the U.S. Sun spoke to a number of mourners outside Ashburn Ice Center, many of whom were still clearly disturbed by the incident.
Former Ashburn ice hockey coach Wellesley Shomo spent three years as a coach at the institution and twenty years as a player.
A heartbroken Wellesley recalled that several of the instructors who perished in the collision were decent individuals who put a lot of effort into their work.
Just minutes before Ashburn Ice Center was scheduled to close for the evening on Thursday, a 15-year-old girl and her mother showed up with flowers.
This is our rink, the tearful teenager told The U.S. Sun, adding that some of her pals perished in the collision. Since I was three, I have been skating here. All I’m doing is trying not to cry.
Although he promised to launch a prompt inquiry, President Trump stated that he and his team have strong feelings and ideas about what transpired.
Along with the 64 aboard the American Airlines flight, three soldiers on theBlack Hawkdied when the military helicopter smashed into the passenger jet at a low elevation.
Horrifying footage showed the moment the plane, collided with the US Army helicopter, causing a bright flash to light up the sky.
The official reason for the crash remains a mystery, despite theAmerican Airlines CEOplacing fault on the helicopter andPresident Donald Trumpblaming diversity efforts for unequipped staff.
However, The Federal Aviation Administration revealed the airport’s air traffic controller tower was reportedly short-staffed at the time of the crash, according toThe New York Times.
‘CRITICAL POINT’
A preliminary report revealed the controller guiding the plane was doingtwo jobs at once- and the tower had been operating with athird of its recommended stafffor years.
As the investigation continues, officials will likely be held legally accountable for the horrifying mishap, according to civil trial attorney Spencer Kuvin.
It appears that the understaffing of our country s air traffic control system has gotten to the critical point where tragedies are going to occur on a more regular basis,” Kuvin told The U.S. Sun.
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“A full investigation into not only the crash, but more importantly into the systemic problems that have been developing over the years within the FAA, needs to occur.
“Congress should have special hearings to determine what the problem is and what can be done to prevent this from happening in the future.”