WASHINGTON, January 30. /TASS/. US President Donald Trump has said that he did not discuss the recent plane crash in Washington D.C. with Russian leader Vladimir Putin but hinted that they contacted each other regarding another matter.
Reporters asked the US president if he had contacted Putin with regard to the crash as there were Russians among those killed. "I have not, no, not about this," Trump said.
He added that the authorities would soon announce the nationalities of those killed in the plane crash. Trump also mentioned communication with other countries on the matter but did not provide any details.
Earlier, an American Airlines passenger jet and a US Army Black Hawk helicopter collided near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. The American Airlines flight, en route from Wichita, Kansas, was carrying 60 passengers and four crew members. There were at least three service members aboard the helicopter. Upon the collision, both aircraft crashed into the Potomac River. According to media reports, 28 bodies have been recovered from the river. According to the authorities, there is no hope of finding any survivors.
The Wichita Eagle newspaper reports that members of the US junior figure skating team were aboard the plane. A source told TASS that Yevgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov, who won the world championships in pairs figure skating for Russia in 1994, were also among the passengers, as well as Inna Volyanskaya, Soviet bronze medalist in pairs figure skating.