‘Wichita remembers’: Gathering marks one year since Flight 5342 plane crash
A year after 67 people died when American Airlines Flight 5342 collided midair with an Army helicopter above Washington, D.C., Wichitans gathered to lift renewed hope for solace and healing through shared silence, songs and prayers.
Among those who died were seven Kansans, including 20-year-old Grace Maxwell, who was on her way back to her Ohio college, Wichita State grad and civil rights lawyer Kiah Duggins, 30-year-old Peter “PJ” Diaz who was known for his love of traveling and cruises, and Lindsey Fields, a Butler Community College instructor who was in D.C. to represent biology teachers at the national level, among others.
Also on board were business people, hunters returning home and young figure skaters who, along with their families and coaches, had visited Wichita for the U.S. Figure Skating Championship and a development camp a few days before.
“Each life mattered. Each life is remembered,” Mayor Lily Wu said. “One year does not diminish loss. Grief has no timeline, and for many families, it remains close.”
Local leaders and members of the faith community, including representatives of the Greater Wichita Ministerial League who coordinated the prayer event, led attendees in prayer and song, emphasizing that the only way forward through such a tragedy is together.
“A year later, we want to make sure that we continue this together. We are always stronger together,” said the Rev. Pamela Myrtis Hughes Mason, president of the league and pastor of St. Paul African Methodist Episcopal church. “…. We say out loud to everyone, we care, we are here, and we are not going anywhere.”
Many families who lost loved ones in the crash, Mason said, were not in attendance because of a memorial held in Washington, D.C. But the Wichita-based event, Wu said, helped show the families and Wichitans that the city hasn’t forgotten its connection to the tragedy.
“To the families and loved ones, please know Wichita remembers,” Wu said. “Your loved ones are held in this community’s heart … may comfort, strength and peace surround all who are grieving.”
Mason ended the event with a “temporary” close to prayer, saying prayer and support doesn’t stop at the one-day mark or the one-year mark — it’s continuous.
“We can then continue to pray, continue to reach out to those families but also continue to be together as community,” Mason said. “ … We are not just responding today, but each and every day.”
This story was originally published January 29, 2026 at 5:27 PM.
