Former Champion Russian Figure Skaters Evgenia Shishkova And Vadim Naumov Among Victims Of American Airlines Crash

Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov, Russia's 1994 figure skating world champions, were reportedly killed when an American Airlines plane collided in mid-air with an Army helicopter Wednesday evening near Reagan National Airport in Washington, D.C.

The Washington, D.C., fire chief said there are no survivors of the crash.

Shishkova, 52, and Naumov, 55, who were married, won the world championship in pair skating and have been in the United States since 1998 training young skaters, Reuters and Tass, the Russian news agency, reported.

Inna Volyanskaya, a bronze medalist at the 1980 USSR Championships, was also among the victims on American Eagle Flight 5342, Reuters reported.

Maxim, the son of Shishkova and Naumov, is also believed to have been aboard the plane.

He had been competing in the U.S. figure skating championships in Wichita, Kansas.

U.S. Figure Skating said some of its skaters, their families and coaches were aboard the flight from Kansas.

"We are and hold the victims' families closely in our hearts," the organization said in a statement. "We will continue to monitor the situation and will release more information as it becomes available."

The plane, carrying 60 passengers and four crew members, collided with the Black Hawk helicopter around 9 p.m. Wednesday, sending both aircraft plummeting into the frigid Potomac River.

Despite hundreds of first responders frantically searching overnight for survivors, none were found, and officials said Thursday that the operation is moving from search-and-rescue to recovery.

"At this point, we don't believe there are any survivors from this accident," D.C. Fire Chief John Donnelly told reporters at a news conference.

He said 27 bodies have been recovered from the plane and one from the helicopter.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed that Shishkova and Naumov were passengers along with other Russian skaters.

"There were other of our fellow citizens on board. It's bad news today from Washington. We are sorry and send our condolences to families and friends," Peskov told reporters, Tass reported.