By Daily Mail (U.S.) | Created at 2025-01-31 14:56:34 | Updated at 2025-01-31 17:46:27
3 hours ago
The husband of a victim of the American Airlines plane crash shared the heartbreaking moment he realized his wife was on the fateful flight.
Late Wednesday night, Hamaad Raza, 25, received what would be the final text message from his wife, Asra Hussain, 26, just minutes before he witnessed a worrying flurry of emergency responders rush by.
Raza, Asra's husband of two years, had been waiting at Ronald Reagan National Airport to pick her up.
'She said, "We're landing in 20 minutes,"' Raza said his wife texted him, before recalling to NBC the terrifying moment he began piecing things together.
'I was waiting, and I started seeing a bunch of EMS vehicles speeding past me, like way too many than normal, and two, my texts weren't going through,' he explained.
Hundreds of first responders raced past him toward the scene of the disastrous plane crash that killed 67 people after colliding with a US Army helicopter.
'It's just, feels crazy that it happened to us, to be honest,' Raza continued.
'I mean, it's like you see these things happen in the news, you see them happen in other countries. And then, I show up to the airport, and my wife's not responding, and I look on Twitter and I see that it's her flight.'
Hamaad Raza discussed the heartbreaking moment he knew something had gone wrong while he waited to pick up his wife, Asra Hussain, from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport
'I was waiting, and I started seeing a bunch of EMS vehicles speeding past me, like way too many than normal, and two, my texts weren't going through,' Raza explained
Raza shared that his wife, Asra Hussain, had never been fond of flying and described her as the 'kindest person' he'd ever met. 'She went above and beyond and then took a giant leap over that when it came to doing things for other people, for me, for her parents, for my parents'
A distraught Raza said that his wife had never been fond of flying and described her as the 'kindest person' he'd ever met.
'She went above and beyond and then took a giant leap over that when it came to doing things for other people, for me, for her parents, for my parents.'
Asra had been on a work trip in Wichita, Kansas, where the flight originated, Raza explained. The pair had met at college in Indiana.
'Life is short. Hug your loved ones,' he said.
'Tell them you love them when they're getting on a flight. Check up on them. Text your family when you land.'
Asra was one of the 64 passengers and crew members killed after the Bombardier CRJ700 jet was struck by a Black Hawk helicopter on an Army training exercise.
Three service personnel on the chopper died in the crash.
The fateful collision happened at around 9pm Wednesday, when the regional jet was landing at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport on a flight from Wichita.
Authorities conducted a massive search-and-rescue operation, which eventually became a recovery mission after it was revealed no one was believed to have survived
Asra had been on a work trip to Wichita. The pair had met at college in Indiana and had been married for two years. 'Life is short. Hug your loved ones. Tell them you love them when they're getting on a flight. Check up on them. Text your family when you land,' Raza said
A few minutes before the jet was set to land, air traffic controllers asked American Airlines Flight 5342 if it could do so on a shorter runway, and the pilots agreed. Controllers cleared the jet to land and flight tracking sites showed the plane adjust its approach to the new runway.
Less than 30 seconds before the crash, an air traffic controller asked the helicopters' crew if they had the arriving plane in sight. The controller made another radio call to the helicopter moments later, saying 'PAT 25 pass behind the CRJ' - apparently telling the chopper to wait for the Bombardier CRJ-701 twin-engine jet to pass. There was no reply. Seconds after that, the aircraft collided.
The plane's radio transponder stopped transmitting about 2,400 feet short of the runway, roughly over the middle of the Potomac River.
The flight's victims included a group of figure skaters returning from the 2025 US Figure Skating Championships in Wichita, and two of their Russian coaches, Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov.
The body of the plane was found upside-down in three sections in waist-deep water, officials said. The helicopter's wreckage was also found.
Authorities conducted a massive search-and-rescue operation, which eventually became a recovery mission after it was revealed no one was believed to have survived.
Roughly 300 first responders were at the scene early Thursday. Inflatable boats were combing the river and first responders set up light towers along the shore to illuminate the area.
Helicopters from law enforcement agencies throughout the region were also being used in the methodical search for bodies.
David Hoagland, President of the DC Firefighters Association, revealed on Thursday night the harrowing scenes that greeted first responders.
Rescue boats search the waters of the Potomac River for survivors after the deadly plane crash
Less than 30 seconds before the crash, an air traffic controller asked the helicopters' crew if they had the arriving plane in sight. The controller made another radio call to the helicopter moments later, saying 'PAT 25 pass behind the CRJ' - apparently telling the chopper to wait for the Bombardier CRJ-701 twin-engine jet to pass. There was no reply. Seconds after that, the aircraft collided
'It's graphic. They encountered people inside the plane still strapped in their seats, and they weren't able to remove them right away,' he said.
'Today, a lot of effort has been focused on removing people from inside the plane who they were not able to remove last night, as well as just continuing to scan the entire area to see who they can locate.'
As of Thursday night, 14 victims remained missing, and efforts to continue recovery were due to resume on Friday morning.
Both aircrafts were said to be in a standard flight pattering when the tragedy occurred, according to New Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy.
'Safety is our expectation. Everyone who flies in American skies expects safety... that didn't happen last night,' Duffy said Thursday.
'I know President Trump and his administration; we will not rest until we have answers.'
Duffy assured reporters that the US still has 'the safest airspace in the world.'
Duffy called the crash preventable and alluded to early indicators about what happened, but did not elaborate as the crash is being investigated.
Pictured: Parts of the wreckage seen sitting in the Potomac River after Flight 5342 collided with an Army Black Hawk helicopter on Wednesday night, killing 67 people
NTSB investigators are seen here working on the black box of American Airlines flight 5342
American Airlines CEO Robert Isom said that 'at this point we don't know why the military aircraft came into the path' of the passenger plane.
The mayor of Wichita, Lily Wu, was emotional as she spoke to reporters Thursday morning.
She said they will share the victims' identities after their families were informed.
American Airlines has set up centers in Washington and in Wichita for people seeking information about family members.
There’s also a hotline for people looking for family and friends: 1-800 679 8215.
