- A small plane crashed shortly after takeoff in eastern France
- All 11 people on board were killed in the accident
- Authorities have launched an investigation into the crash
Eleven people lost their lives on Sunday after a small aircraft carrying parachutists crashed shortly after takeoff in the northeastern French town of Tomblaine, officials said.
Eko Hot Blog gathered that the aircraft, operated by a parachuting school, was carrying one pilot, five trainee parachutists and five instructors when it went down moments after departing from Nancy Essey Airport.
French Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said the plane crashed about 300 metres from the runway, narrowly avoiding nearby homes. Several relatives of the trainee parachutists were at the airport and witnessed the tragedy.
A witness told reporters that the aircraft was climbing at around 11:00 a.m. local time when the engine noise suddenly stopped before the plane plunged to the ground. The witness said there were no signs of fire or an explosion before the crash.
Regional prefect Yves Seguy said the single engine aircraft came down almost vertically in a residential area near a shopping centre, with the wreckage landing on a bicycle path.
Authorities noted that the crash could have caused even greater devastation had it occurred only a few metres away from its impact site.
Initial reports indicated the aircraft was registered in Germany, although German authorities had not commented on the incident.
Investigators have begun examining the cause of the crash, while officials have not ruled out any possible factors, including the extreme heat recorded in the region a day earlier
