Three people have died after a small aircraft crashed in western Germany on Monday morning.
The accident happened at around 11:20 a.m. near the village of Gerderath, close to the town of Erkelenz in North Rhine-Westphalia.
The aircraft was a Cessna 172, which, according to Dutch reports, had departed from Hilversum Airport in the Netherlands.
The plane came down in an open field and was completely destroyed in the crash. All three people aboard were killed.
Police in the Heinsberg district confirmed that there were no survivors. Authorities have not yet released the identities of those who died.
Police and firefighters were dispatched to the scene, while an investigation has been launched to determine what caused the aircraft to crash.
Dutch reports indicate that the plane was operated by or belonged to Vliegschool Hilversum, a flight school based in the Netherlands.
