“The site is a picture of horror. The grief of the families and friends is immeasurable. We must now stand together. We are united in our great grief,” German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said in a statement on Tuesday.
Earlier on Tuesday, French Prime Minister Manuel Valls said it’s not clear why the plane crashed, and it will require a full investigation along with the plane’s black boxes.
A spokesman for the French Civil Aviation authority says the plane that crashed in the French Alps with 150 people on board never sent out a distress signal.
Eric Heraud said the plane lost radio contact at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, but “never declared a distress alert itself.”
He said it was the combination of loss of radio contract with control and the plane’s descent which prompted the control service to declare a distress.
Heraud said six investigators from the Bureau of Accident Investigations, or BEA, were en route from Paris and would be at the crash site by evening. One investigator from the region was already present, he said.
Officials believe all onboard were likely killed when the plane crashed on its way from Barcelona in Spain to Duesseldorf, Germany.
The crashed plane was an Airbus A320.
“We have been informed of an accident involving an A320 family aircraft and all efforts are now going towards assessing the situation,” Airbus said in a statement on Tuesday. “We will provide further information as soon as available.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
