Wife of skating coach killed in DC plane crash reveals haunting comment he made to her just before the tragedy
The wife of a skating coach killed in the DC plane crash has revealed the comment he made to her just before the tragedy.
67 people are believed to have died after a passenger plane hit a helicopter in mid-air near Washington DC's Ronald Reagan airport on Wednesday.
An overnight search and rescue mission was subsequently launched as officials say no survivors are expected.
Coach Alexandr Kirsanov was among the casualties as he was on route to Wichita, Kansas, to accompany two young athletes at the National Development Camp for figure skating.
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The last time Natalya Gudin spoke to her husband was before the flight when Kirsanov was at the gate at the Wichita Dwight D. Eisenhower National Airport.
"I lost everything. I lost my husband. I lost my students. I lost my friends," she told ABC News, before revealing what he told her on the phone before boarding the plane. "'It's time for boarding'."
They were supposed to talk again when he landed at the Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Virginia but that call sadly never came.
Gudin said she heard from the mother of one of the other figure skaters aboard the flight that there was a crash.
She said they should 'immediately go to D.C'.
Gudin stayed up all night, hoping for good news.
However, by Thursday, she learned her husband and their students had been killed.
Officials said that what began as a rescue mission had turned into a recovery mission.
Over 30 bodies were recovered from the jet and one body from the helicopter, per local authorities.
D.C. Fire and EMS Chief John Donnelly said they do not expect any survivors.
On Thursday, Gudin was at a hotel in Virginia waiting for more information about Kirsanov's remains.
"I need my husband back," she said. "I need his body back."
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Nasir Jabbar