U.S. figure skater Jon Maravilla was denied access to a flight departing Wichita, Kan. on Wednesday due to the size of his dog, but it was not the fatal American Airlines plane that his teammates were on which collided with an Army helicopter Wednesday night in Washington, DC.
After false reports of his near-death experience originated in Russian state media and then went viral, Maravilla explained to the Daily Beast what really happened.
Maravilla was scheduled to be on a Delta flight that went to Atlanta before transferring to Detroit.
However, he was told his Bichon Frisé, Yuki, was not allowed to board.
Maravilla told the website he had no idea how the false rumor got started.
“I still can’t believe it,” Maravilla said of the deadly crash. “I was just with them watching them have lots of fun and just enjoying their time.”
He was initially quoted by multiple outlets as telling Russian state media that there were “about 14 figure skaters on the plane, not counting their parents and coaches.”
Maravilla, a 2025 U.S. junior pairs bronze medalist alongside partner Saya Carpenter, provided details on his journey on his protected Instagram account, as seen in captured images.
He posted to his Instagram Story a photo inside an airport — believed to be Wichita Eisenhower Airport in Kansas, from where both his flight and the one to DC originated — with the caption “Not allowed past gate to board flight,” along with five facepalm emojis, followed by “get me tf out of Kansas please.”
He later posted a photo of a road with the caption “14 hour journey begins” that showed the time of 12:23.
Maravailla, who is a senior at West Bloomfield High School in Michigan according to the school’s athletics page, reportedly instead opted to drive from Wichita, Kan.
He told the Daily Beast he initially heard about the tragedy when was texted by friends worried he was onboard.
Follow The Post’s coverage of the American Airlines jet’s collision with a military helicopter in DC
There are no expected survivors from the crash, with the plane carrying 60 passengers and four flight members and the helicopter having three people onboard.
The American Airlines Flight 5342 from Wichita to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport contained several U.S. figure skaters and coaches following the National Development Camp at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Wichita from Jan. 20-26.
The husband-wife world championship tandem of Vadim Naumov and Evgenia Shishkova were also on the plane.
The plane and helicopter collided around 9 p.m., with debris falling into the Potomac River below in what is expected to be the United States’ deadliest plane crash in 15 years.
“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,” US Figure Skating said in a statement.
