Germanwings victims' hometown 'angry, shocked' as probe reveals copilot deliberately crashed plane

The town and school of the 16 kids, who lost their lives in the Germanwings plane crash in the French Alps, have said that they were shocked by the revelation that co-pilot may have deliberately crashed the jet.

Bodo Klimpel, mayor of the small northwestern town of Haltern where the students lived, said that he was "stunned, angry, speechless and deeply shocked" by the news, reported News24.

After investigators revealed that co-pilot Andreas Lubitz appeared to show a desire to destroy the plane and may have caused the crash deliberately, Klimpel said that it was bad enough for the families to learn about the death of their loved ones in the accident. But when it's clear that an individual may have caused the accident deliberately then it takes on an "even worse dimension."

The 16 teens, onboard flight 9525, including 14 girls and two boys, were among at least 75 Germans who accounted for almost half of the total death toll of 150.

They and their two female teachers had been on a week-long exchange trip near Barcelona, paying a reciprocal visit after Spanish youngsters came in December to Haltern.