American figure skater Anton Spiridonov rubbishes Russian report he was on plane that crashed in Washington

An American fig skater who was said to beryllium among the victims of the Washington level disaster has revealed helium was ne'er connected committee the formation successful the archetypal place.

Anton Spiridonov posted connected Instagram connected Thursday morning: 'Russian quality outlets person included maine connected a database of presumed radical connected the formation from Wichita to Washington D.C.

'I was not connected this flight, convey you for everyone's interest for my safety. My bosom goes retired to each the families affected by this tragedy.'

Everyone aboard an American Airlines jet carrying 60 passengers and 4 unit members from Wichita Airport successful Kansas that collided with an Army chopper was feared dead.

It comes after Spencer Lane, different subordinate of the US fig skating team, shared a photograph from inside the doomed level soon earlier it crashed.

The 26-year-old uploaded the photograph astir 7pm ET Wednesday, which appeared to amusement the pitchy taxiing connected the runway astatine Wichita Airport before it took disconnected for its last flight.

He captioned it ICT -> DCA - the codes for Wichita Dwight D. Eisenhower National Airport and Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. 

Other elite members of the American fig skating squad who were expected astatine the adjacent wintertime Olympics were besides onboard the plane, a bombardier CRJ700.

They were returning location to the DC country aft attending a National Development Camp for young skaters successful Wichita, Kansas.

Russian fig skaters Yevgenia Skhiskhkova and Vadim Naumov, who mentored Lane, are besides believed to person been connected the plane.

Their Team USA fig skater lad Maxim 23, was astatine the Wichita campy though it is unclear if helium was besides connected the fateful flight.

'We are devastated by this unspeakable calamity and clasp the victims´ families intimately successful our hearts,' U.S. Figure Skating said successful a statement. 

At slightest 28 bodies were pulled from the icy waters of the Potomac River aft the midair collision Wednesday nighttime erstwhile the chopper seemingly flew successful the way of the pitchy arsenic it was landing astatine Ronald Reagan National Airport adjacent Washington.

Crews were inactive searching for different casualties but did not judge determination were immoderate survivors, which would marque it the deadliest U.S. aerial clang successful astir 24 years.

'We are present astatine the constituent wherever we are switching from a rescue cognition to a betterment operation,' said John Donnelly, the occurrence main successful the nation's capital. 'We don't judge determination are immoderate survivors.'

The assemblage of the level was recovered upside down successful 3 sections successful waist-deep water. The wreckage of the chopper was besides found. 

Donnelly said archetypal responders connected Thursday were searching an country of the Potomac River arsenic acold southbound arsenic the Woodrow Wilson Bridge, astir 3 miles southbound of the airport.

Images from the stream showed boats astir the partially submerged helping and the mangled wreckage of the plane's fuselage.

Investigators volition effort to portion unneurotic the aircrafts´ last moments earlier their collision, including interaction with aerial postulation controllers arsenic good arsenic a nonaccomplishment of altitude by the rider jet.

Reagan Airport volition reopen astatine 11am Thursday, the Federal Aviation Administration announced. The FAA antecedently said it would beryllium closed until 5am Friday.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, conscionable sworn successful earlier this week, was asked if helium could reassure Americans that the United States inactive has the safest airspace successful the world.

'Can I warrant the American flying nationalist that the United States has the astir harmless and unafraid airspace successful the world? And the reply to that is, perfectly yes, we do,' helium said.

The nighttime was clear, the level and chopper were some successful modular formation patterns and determination was modular connection betwixt the craft and the tower, Duffy said.

'We person aboriginal indicators of what happened here,' Duffy said, though helium declined to elaborate further pending an investigation.

It was not antithetic to person a subject craft flying the stream and an craft landing astatine the airport, helium said. Asked if the level was alert that determination was a chopper successful the area, Duffy said helium would accidental that the chopper was alert that determination was a level successful the area.

Asked astir President Donald Trump suggesting successful an overnight societal media station that the collision could person been prevented, Duffy said, 'From what I´ve seen truthful far, bash I deliberation this was preventable? Absolutely.'