Germanwings crash: Foreign Secretary says it is 'sadly likely' that British nationals were among the 150 people killed in horror Alps plane crash
Philip Hammond said 'it is likely there were some British nationals' but has not released any more details
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.British nationals are likely to have been on board the Airbus that crashed in the French Alps killing 150 passengers, the Foreign Secretary has confirmed.
Philip Hammond said “it is likely there were some British nationals” but has not released any more details.
One woman living in Manchester has been named locally as Marina Bandres Lopez-Belio, from the Pyrenees city of Jaca in Huesca, north eastern Spain.
She is thought to have been travelling on the Airbus A320 with her seven-month-old baby and Polish husband. Local paper El Periodico de Aragon said the 37-year-old had returned to Spain for her uncle’s funeral.
She is understood to have lived in Fallowfield, South of Manchester and Rochdale, in Greater Manchester, since arriving in the UK.
Mr Hammond said: "I don't want to speculate on numbers of British nationals involved until we have completed our checks on all the passenger information.
"However, based on the information available to us, it is sadly likely that there were some British nationals on board the flight.
“We are providing consular assistance and will give further help as more information becomes available.
"We are working closely with the French, German and Spanish authorities, and the airline, to establish the facts. The UK Air Accidents Investigation Branch, and UK disaster victim identification experts, are also standing by to offer assistance to the French authorities, if required."
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments