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Mixed commission to investigate Spanish air crash

Xinhua, May 10, 2015 Adjust font size:

A mixed commission including the Spanish Ministers for Public Works and Defense will investigate the crash of a military Airbus A400M which claimed four lives on Saturday just outside of Seville airport.

The accident happened shortly after take-off at around 13:00 local time (1100 GMT). It has been confirmed by air-traffic control that the crew "reported that they had a fault before impact," although the exact cause of the accident is unknown and it is even thought the Airbus could have collided with a high-voltage pylon.

Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has promised "maximum transparency to explain what has happened," while Airbus indicated that their technicians will give their "total assistance" to the commission.

Spain's Minister of Defense Pedro Morenes will hold meetings on Sunday with the French and German Defense Ministers in order to look at the incident. Morenes explained that "an incident like this is not the best thing that can happen in an industry such as ours."

The Airbus A400M which crashed was undergoing tests ahead of being delivered to the Turkish military in June and at the time of the accident it was practicing take-offs and landings.

Meanwhile the British Ministry of Defense has announced it is suspending the use of its two Airbus A400M until the cause of Saturday's accident has been discovered. Endit