In a heartbreaking interview hours before it became clear that there were no survivors of the tragedy, the husband of a woman on board American Eagle flight 5342, which crashed Wednesday night after colliding with a US Army helicopter, said he believed something “might be up” moments before the tragedy.
When the plane crashed into a military plane at approximately 9 p.m. on Wednesday night, Hamaad Raza revealed that his wife had been texting him while she was traveling from Wichita, Kansas to Washington, DC.
Commercial airlines are supposed to receive a warning ahead of potential collisions through a Traffic Alert and Collision Avoidance System (TCAS), but aviation officials have yet to offer an explanation for the crash.
In an attempt to locate bodies among the debris, emergency personnel have been frantically wading through the water all night long in freezing and icy conditions.
According to officials, dozens of dead bodies have been found in the water.
“As we speak, I’m just hoping that someone is dragging her out of the river.
Raza told WUSA9 in the wee hours of Wednesday, “That’s all I can pray for, I’m just praying to God.”
Raza revealed to WUSA9 reporters in the heartbreaking interview that his wife texted him to say she was “landing in 20 minutes,” but his responses did not go through and were marked as “undelivered.”
“I realized something might be up at that point,” Raza said.
According to WUSA9 reporter Larry Miller, Raza told him that his wife had traveled to and from Wichita for work and that she “always had a fear of flying and that she never really was comfortable.”
Raza has been left in the dark about any information regarding his wife, despite his desperate wait for answers from officials.
At Ronald Reagan National Airport, a man who spoke to Sky News reporters claimed that his “daughter’s best friend and her mom” were on the plane when it crashed into the frozen river.
One of the two was an ice skater, he said, and they had been returning to Washington, DC, for a Kansas-based “athletics trip.”
It is thought that a number of coaches and competitors from the Figure Skating Championship were on board the aircraft when it crashed.
Evgenia Shishkova, a former world champion and ice skating coach, her husband, and perhaps her son were on board the aircraft, according to Russian state media.
Senator Roger Marshall of Kansas stated that it is believed that all 67 individuals on board the two planes that crashed into the Potomac River are dead. According to authorities, none of the three members of the helicopter’s crew were senior Army officials.
Ronald Reagan National Airport in Washington, D.C. has suspended all flights until at least 11 a.m. on Thursday. Two sets of lights that are consistent with separate aircraft seem to merge into a fireball in video footage taken from the nearby Kennedy Center.
“I have received a comprehensive briefing on the horrific incident that occurred at Reagan National Airport,” stated President Donald Trump. “May their souls be blessed by God.”
“Call American Airlines toll-free at 800-679-8215 if you think you may have loved ones on board Flight 5342,” the airline said in a statement. For more phone numbers, callers from outside the United States can visit news.aa.com. Family members in the U.S. Virgin Islands, Canada, or Puerto Rico can give 800-679-8215 a call directly.
