Germanwings jet crash kills 150 people in French Alps

A Germanwings jet transporting 150 people from Barcelona to Duesseldorf collided into a remote section of the French Alps on Tuesday. All aboard were assumed as deceased. According to France’s aviation authority, the pilots did not send out any distress calls, and had lost radio contact with their control center. As rescue helicopters were deployed to the crash site, German Chancellor Angela Merkel advised reporters not to speculate on the cause. She added that they do not have all the facts as of yet, and the crash will be investigated thoroughly. Lufthansa Vice President Heike Birlenbach told reporters in Barcelona that for now, the crash is being treated as an accident until proven otherwise. French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve stated that a mysterious black box had been discovered at the crash site and “will be immediately investigated.” He did not specify whether it was a data recorder or a cockpit voice recorder. Germanwings is a low-cost carrier owned by Lufthansa, Germany’s biggest airline, and serves mostly European destinations. Tuesday’s tragic incident was its first involving passenger deaths since it began operating back in 2002. Among the deceased on Flight 9525 included: two babies, six crew members, sixty-seven Germans (including sixteen high school students from Haltern), one Dutch citizen, and bass baritone Opera star Oleg Bryjak.