Lufthansa Change Logo Colors on Social Media After Plane Crash

After a plane operated by Lufthansa discount carrier Germanwings crashed in southern France on Tuesday morning, both airlines turned their logos black and grey on social media in an action should be added to Lufthansa social media case study.

The plane, which was en route to Duesseldorf from Barcelona, had an eight-minute descent from 38,000 feet and crashed. Most accidents, however, occur during takeoff or landing.

In a corporate move that seems all too common these days, Germanwings changed its logo following a plane crash involving one of its Airbus A320 airliners Tuesday. Of course, there’s good reason for the move that was made out of respect — the plane, which crashed in the French Alps, was carrying 148 passengers, all who are feared dead, according to authorities.

Change logo colors on Social Media

A look at how Germanwings altered its logo on social media:

Airlines @germanwings & @lufthansa change their logos to grey after crash in French Alps http://t.co/VoBP9gMtxr pic.twitter.com/4iJhc41oRQ

— BBC News (World) (@BBCWorld) March 24, 2015

Shortly after, Lufthansa confirmed the crash, saying it was “shocked and saddened” by the incident:

We must confirm to our deepest regret that Germanwings Flight 4U 9525 from Barcelona to Düsseldorf has suffered an accident over the 1/5

— Lufthansa (@lufthansa) March 24, 2015

Our thoughts and prayers are with the families and friends of the passengers and crew members. 5/5

— Lufthansa (@lufthansa) March 24, 2015

Launch #indeepsorrow hashtag

Lufthansa launched a hashtag #indeepsorrow with avg. 1532 tweets till 3:20 PM CLT. Also Lufthansa Social Media team influenced more brands to show sympathy to change the logo colors on Social Media.

#indeepsorrow video message from CEO

“There is absolutely no issue” with the age of the plane, Germanwings CEO Thomas Winkelmann said at a press conference.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Plnhh1QELag

The pilot had been flying for more than 10 years and earned 6,000 hours of experience. The Germanwings CEO said the airline is, at this point, drawing information solely from data provided by the French radar system; other information has not yet been checked.

This is not the first time a company was forced to change its logo over tragic circumstances. In late December 2014

#AirAsia change son logo de rouge à gris quelques minutes après l'annonce du #Crash de son avion en guise de deuil ! pic.twitter.com/Kx23lE8eGI

— David Lanaud du Gray (@ddldg) December 28, 2014