Germany Plane crash in Lithuania: All debris recovered

The recovery work at the site of the cargo plane crash in Lithuania has been completed. All debris from the Swiftair aircraft, which had been traveling from Leipzig to Vilnius on behalf of DHL, has been removed, a police spokesperson said.

Smaller parts of the aircraft were removed the previous week and the large wreckage parts - including the cockpit of the Boeing 737 - were taken away by truck to a hangar at the weekend for examination. The flight recorders, which record the flight data, had already been found and recovered. They are to be analyzed in Germany.

The police have also finished their work at the previously cordoned-off crash site. The area will no longer be secured, said the police spokesman. What remains are destroyed buildings and burnt cars that caught fire after the crash, as can be seen in pictures from Lithuanian media. The residents of the damaged apartment building have been temporarily housed in social housing provided by the city council.

German investigators still on site

The cargo plane crashed into a residential area near Vilnius Airport early on Monday morning shortly before its planned landing and crashed on the ground. One of the four crew members was killed. The cause of the crash is still unknown. So far, there are no indications of a possible terrorist attack or an act of sabotage.

The Lithuanian authorities have launched an extensive investigation following the crash. German experts from the Federal Bureau of Aircraft Accident Investigation are also involved in the on-site investigation. According to a spokesperson for the Ministry of Justice, they plan to continue their work in Lithuania for at least another week. Investigators from Spain and the USA are also supporting the search for the cause of the crash.

SDA