Deadly Germanwings A320 Сrash in French Alps

The Germanwings passenger plane which crashed in France was produced in 1990. The jet, with registration D-AIPX, took its maiden flight on November 29, 1990, for Lufthansa. The plane was powered by two CFM56-5A1 engines. On January 31, 2015, it was handed over to Lufthansa’s subsidiary Germanwings.

Above: A Germanwings Airbus A320 registration D-AIPX is seen at the Berlin airport on March 29, 2014.

The Airbus A320 crashed in a remote area in the French Alps. The wreckage of the aircraft is located in the mountains at 6,500 feet.

Above: The last position of Germanwings flight #4U9525 on Flightradar24.

Spanish King Felipe VI cut short his state visit to France due to the Germanwings A320 crash. French President Francois Hollande expressed his condolences to the monarch. European leaders and high-ranking officials also expressed their condolences to the families of the passengers.

Above: French President Francois Hollande, left, welcomes Spain's King Felipe VI, center, and Queen Letizia of Spain, upon their arrival at the Elysee Palace, in Paris, France, Tuesday, March 24, 2015.

French gendarmerie reported that helicopters could not land at the crash site and thatthe evacuation of the bodies would take several days.

Above: Helicopters of the French Air Force and civil security services are seen in Seyne, south-eastern France, on March 24, 2015, near the site where the Germanwings Airbus A320 crashed.

France’s BEA (Bureau of Enquiry and Analysis for Civil Aviation Safety) launched a safety investigation into the crash of the Germanwings aircraft. Airbus also sent a team of its technical advisers to the crash site.

Above: French emergency services workers (back) and members of the French gendarmerie gather in Seyne, south-eastern France, on March 24, 2015, near the site where the Germanwings Airbus A320 crashed.

Most of the passengers on board A320 were German, Spanish and Turkish nationals. According to various reports, citizens of the United States, Mexico, Australia, Denmark and Japan were among the victims of the crash.

Above: Family members of people involved in a crashed plane comfort each other as they arrive at the Barcelona airport in Spain, Tuesday, March 24, 2015.

No single cause of the Germanwings A320 crash in the French Alps can be ruled out at the current stage of the investigation, French Prime Minister Manuel Valls said. He added that the French Foreign Ministry opened an emergency center for the families of the passengers.

Above: French Prime Minister Manuel Valls talks on his mobile phone before a military ceremony in the courtyard of the Invalides in Paris, March 24, 2015.

The flight declared distress at 10:47 local time near Barcelonnette, France.

Above: A helicopter of the French civil security services flies near Seyne, south-eastern France, on March 24, 2015, near the site where the Germanwings Airbus A320 crashed.

The Airbus A320 was travelling from Barcelona to Dusseldorf. The plane was initially scheduled to depart from the El Prat airport in Barcelona at 09:35 local time, but was delayed for a half an hour and took off at 10:01 local time. No technical problems were reported before the departure.

Above: The arrivals board shows flight 4U 9525 from Barcelona without a status at the airport in Duesseldorf, Germany, on Tuesday, March 24.

Lufthansa CEO Carsten Spohr said Wednesday that the Germanwings jet crash in France was not linked to a brief pre-flight repair job carried out on the ill-fated A320 plane.

Above: A worker from a Swissport, a Service Company who handles for Germanwings airlines, works inside an office in the Barcelona airport in Spain, Tuesday, March 24.

Germanwings is a low-cost affiliate of German airline Lufthansa, which was created in 1997. Its fleet consists of 18 Airbus A-320-200 planes, 42 Airbus A319-100, and 21 Bombardier planes. Tuesday's Airbus A320 crash was the first accident in the history of Germanwings.

Above: Rescuers leave from a field where the rescue effort is headquartered on March 24, 2015, in the southeastern French town of Seyne after the Germanwings A320 plane crashed.

On Tuesday, one of the flight recorders (black boxes) from the plane was found at the crash site. French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said on Wednesday that the black box was damaged.

Above: Family members of passengers killed in the Germanwings plane crash react at Barcelona's El Prat airport March 24, 2015.

The full deciphering of the black box may take several days because it is badly damaged. The second in-flight recorder has not yet been found.

Above: French firefighters prepare to take-off in Digne-les-Bains for the crash site of the Airbus A320, in the French Alps, March 24, 2015.

All possible causes in the crash are being reviewed, but a terrorist act is not on the top of the list, according to French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve.

Above: German police officers stand together in the terminal at Dusseldorf airport March 24, 2015.