Dozens of people have died after an American Airlines passenger plane was in a mid-air crash with a military helicopter in Washington DC.

There were 64 people on the plane that departed from Witchita in Kansas and three US soldiers in the helicopter when the aircraft collided just before 9pm local time on Wednesday.

A total of 27 bodies have been recovered from the jet and one from the helicopter, chief of Washington DC Fire and Emergency Medical Services, John Donnelly, said, adding that authorities believe there are no survivors.

The crash, which happened as the jet sought to land at Ronald Reagan National Airport, is the worst civil aviation disaster in the US since 2009.

Here’s what we know about the passengers so far.

Latest on Washington DC plane crash

Up to 14 members of US figure skating community

The Skating Club of Boston has named members of its community who were on the American Airlines jet in a statement posted on Instagram.

They include athlete Jinna Han and her mother Jin Han, athlete Spencer Lane and her mother Christine Lane, and coaches Vadim Naumov and Yevgenia Shishkova, a married couple who won the world championships in pairs figure skating in 1994.

Reports of them being on board the jet were confirmed by the Kremlin.

As many as 14 American members of the community are feared dead in the mid-air collision over the Potomac River, the Skating Club of Boston’s CEO said.

Doug Zeghibe said: “To the best of our knowledge, 14 skaters returning home from the national development Camp at Wichita, Kansas, put on by US figure skating, were lost in the plane crash at Washington DC.

“Of those 14 skaters, six were from the Skating Club of Boston. Two coaches and two teenage athletes, and two of the athletes’ mums.”

“It’s a major loss for our skating community,” he added.

US Figure Skating confirmed several members of their community were on the American Airlines flight.

“We are devastated by this unspeakable tragedy and hold the victims’ families closely in our hearts.

“We will continue to monitor the situation and will release more information as it becomes available,” it said in a statement.

A man who said his daughter’s best friend and her mother were on the jet when it crashed told Sky News they had been at an “athletic trip” in Kansas.

Russian world champions

According to US media, Shishkova, 52, and Naumov, 55, had lived in America since at least 1998, where they trained young ice skaters.

Their son, Maxim, 23, who had been competing in the US figure skating championships in Wichita, was also feared to be on the plane. But his friend and fellow skater Anton Spiridonov has reportedly said he left four days ago.

The couple were reported to have been returning from the competition and travelling with a group of young skaters.

Inna Volyanskaya, a former skater who competed for the Soviet Union, was also reported to have been on board, Russian state media said. She was a coach at the Washington figure skating club, according to its website.

“We regret and offer condolences to the families and friends who lost those of our fellow citizens who died in this plane crash,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said.

Skaters confirm safety

US-Russian figure skater Spiridonov has confirmed he was not on the plane that crashed, despite reports suggesting he was.

Russian media had named him among the casualties, he said in an Instagram post, but he’s appeared to correct the record.

“I was NOT on this flight, thank you for everyone’s concern for my safety,” the Winter World University Games silver medallist wrote.

“My heart goes out to all the families affected by this tragedy.”

Cristian McKnight-Ide, a professional skater, said in a Facebook post: “Thank you for those who have reached out regarding the flight from Wichita that crashed. Scarlet and I are home safe since early this afternoon.

“We are all praying for the safety of our fellow skaters that were on that flight.”

Anne Goldberg-Baldwin, also a skater, said she was “safe” as she asked her followers to pray for her loved ones in a story on Instagram.

More than 300 first responders are facing freezing temperatures as part of a recovery operation which is expected to last days.

The Pentagon and the Army are investigating the crash, US defense secretary Pete Hegseth said on X.