Heartbreaking last words of world champion figure skaters to son before fatal plane crash revealed

30 January 2025, 13:59 | Updated: 30 January 2025, 14:29

The former Russian world champion figure skaters on board the doomed American Airlines flight that crashed in Washington DC told their son they were "proud" of him before boarding the plane.

The American Airlines flight carrying 64 people collided with a military helicopter over the capital, with everyone on board believed to be dead.

The Kremlin confirmed Russian citizens were on board the doomed flight - after local media reported former world champions Yevgenia Shishkova, 53, and Vadim Naumov, 56, had been on the plane.

The married couple won the World Figure Skating Championship in pairs in 1994.

The pair, now coaches, were flying back to Washington after attending the US Figure Skating Championships in Wichita, Kansas.

Live: More than 30 bodies recovered after plane collides with military helicopter over Washington DC

Now, their son, Maxim Naumov, has revealed their final words to him before boarding the flight.

"We are proud of you, Maxim," the pair said to their figure skater son in a social media post, Russian media reports.

The couple, from Leningrad, moved to the United States in 1998, where they became coaches.

Reports indicate they were returning from the competition with a group of young skaters.

Their son, Maxim, who placed fourth at the competition, is said to have left Kansas on Monday with another American figure skater, Anton Spiridonov.

The flight from Wichita, Kansas, was coming to land at Ronald Reagan National Airport in Arlington, Virginia.

The jet was carrying 60 passengers and four crew, with three US Army soldiers on board the Blackhawk helicopter.

Giving an update this afternoon, DC's fire and emergency medical services chief John Donnelly confirmed that all 64 people on board are believed to be dead.

"We don't believe there are any survivors from this accident and we have recovered 27 people from the plane and one from the helicopter," he told reporters

Footage shows moment of Washington D.C. plane crash

.Police divers and boats are searching the water for bodies, but conditions are described as "extremely rough" with "blocks of ice" in the recently frozen river.

So far, at least 30 bodies have been located.

The operation is expected to last at least several days.