Woman on Ill-Fated Flight Texted Husband Minutes Before Mid-Air Collision
The 26-year-old was aboard the PSA Airlines flight that collided with a military helicopter, her husband said.
WUSA 9
A 26-year-old woman who was aboard the PSA Airlines flight that collided with a military helicopter on Wednesday texted her husband minutes before their scheduled landing in Washington, D.C.
Her husband, Hamaad Raza, revealed her text in an interview with CBS affiliate station WUSA 9.
“We’re landing in 20,” her text read. Raza responded, but not all of his messages were delivered.
“That’s when I realized something might be up,” he said.
.@WUSA9 -- the CBS affiliate in the D.C. market --interviews Hamaad Raza, a man who says his WIFE was *ON* the American Airlines plane that collided with a Blackhawk helicopter and crashed into the Potomac River:
— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) January 30, 2025
"I'm just praying that somebody's pulling her out of the river… pic.twitter.com/91c6Vlw8SG
Raza appeared distraught as he waited with a relative for updates near the Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.
He said his wife went to Wichita, Kansas for work and was always afraid of flying.
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“I’m just praying that somebody’s pulling her out of the river right now as we speak,” Raza said. “That’s all I can pray for.”
Raza said he had not received any updates from American Airlines, which owns PSA, and only learned about the incident through social media.
Dozens are feared dead after the passenger plane collided midair with a Black Hawk army helicopter and crashed into the Potomac River near the Reagan Airport around 9 p.m.
Emergency personnel are scouring the river late into the night to see if any of the 67 people involved in the crash are still alive.
The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating the incident.
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