ThyssenKrupp mourns over the dead of its top officials in the Atlantic air disaster. Mr Erich Walter Heine member of the executive board of ThyssenKrupp Steel AG and Mr Claus Peter Hellhammer employee of ThyssenKrupp Steel in Duisburg lost their lives when an Air France aircraft crashed over the Atlantic.

Dr Ekkehard Schulz chairman of executive board of ThyssenKrupp AG said that "In Mr Erich Heine, we are losing an esteemed colleague who did outstanding work for the ThyssenKrupp Group. Our thoughts are with his family at this time of great sadness."

Mr Erich Heine studied engineering and business administration. He began his professional career in 1991 at the South African steel company Iscor Limited. In 1999, he spent a year with BHP Billiton as marketing manager before being appointed GM of Iscor's Newcastle plant.

Mr Claus Peter Hellhammer completed a technical trainee program with ThyssenKrupp Steel and worked at ThyssenKrupp CSA Siderúrgica do Atlantico from mid 2007 to early 2009. Most recently he had taken on special duties in the area of health and safety fire protection in Duisburg. He was returning from a private trip to Brazil.