MOSCOW — Three of the victims in Wednesday’s plane crash in the United States were Russian citizens, and a fourth passenger may have also held a Russian passport, a Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said Friday.
Maria Zakharova, the ministry’s spokeswoman, cited information from Russia’s embassy in Washington confirming the identities of the three Russian nationals and said authorities were working to verify the status of a fourth individual.
Among those on board were Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov, world champion figure skaters from Russia, as well as Inna Volyanskaya, a former Soviet-era skater who had worked as a coach in the United States, Zakharova said. Several American athletes were also on board, she added, citing U.S. officials who confirmed that there were no survivors.
“Our embassy is in communication with the U.S. State Department on all aspects of the situation,” Zakharova said, though she suggested the dialogue had been limited. “It looks like a one-way communication. We have been asking questions, but so far, we have not received substantive responses. However, there is communication, and we have been given some general replies.”
Zakharova extended condolences to the families of the victims, both Russian and American, and expressed sympathy for those affected by the crash near Washington, D.C.
The crash occurred Wednesday evening near Reagan National Airport, when an American Airlines passenger plane collided midair with a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter, according to U.S. officials. The passenger plane, which had departed from Kansas, was carrying 60 passengers and four crew members. At least three U.S. Army soldiers were on board the military helicopter.
The impact caused the passenger plane to break apart, with debris landing in the Potomac River. There were no survivors.
Former President Donald Trump confirmed that Russian nationals were among those killed and said U.S. authorities had already been in contact with Russia to coordinate the repatriation of their remains.
