Three members of a prominent German family have died in a plane crash in Namibia, prompting shock in their home town.
According to the Schwarz Group, which owns major German retail brands such as Lidl and Kaufland, the victims included Silke Lohmiller, former managing director of the Dieter Schwarz Foundation, her husband, former Kaufland manager Richard Lohmiller, and their 19-year-old son.
Bad Rappenau Mayor Sebastian Frei told dpa on Tuesday that the news had caused great sadness in the south-western German town.
“The family was very much part of town life and highly regarded,” Frei said.
The family had taken off on Sunday as tourists in a Cessna 210 from the international airport in Windhoek.
The aircraft was due to land about an hour later on a private runway at a lodge in the Sossusvlei area, but never reached its destination. The wreckage was reportedly found on Monday morning, with the German pilot also killed in the crash.
Namibian authorities have launched an investigation into the cause of the accident.
