"Our suffering and adversity have brought us closer together," said Joachim Gauck.

Federal President Joachim Gauck paid tribute to the victims of the crash. "For these families and friends, nothing has been the same since then. Something has been destroyed that cannot be mended again in this world," he declared. In addition to our grief and our pain we feel profound horror at the abysses of the human soul, indeed of human existence, he added.

United in suffering

No power in the world can make good a loss like this. But by supporting one another, a bond of shared suffering and mourning is created between us. "We are united through grief, and pain, and also through a profound sense of helplessness," said the Federal President. "But we are also united through mutual support, help and being there for one another."

He said he could feel this bond very strongly at this time, a bond of togetherness "here in Cologne Cathedral, all over Germany and in correspondence with heads of state from abroad, many of whom have conveyed their condolences to the families and friends of the victims and to our country as a whole," noted Joachim Gauck. "I am extremely grateful for this solidarity."

Thanks to all wiling helpers

The Federal President also used the memorial service to thank all those who have done everything possible in France to welcome the families of victims, to recover the dead and to investigate the disaster. Some of them attended the ceremony.

Joachim Gauck also expressly thanked all the French people who, in word and deed, brought comfort to the families and friends of the victims from Germany. "Particularly at difficult times, our peoples stand together," said the Federal President.

"What has happened is beyond comprehension"

The service began with an ecumenical service for the victims of the plane crash. Mourners included many relatives and friends of the victims from Germany, Spain and other countries. "What has happened is beyond our comprehension," said Annette Kurschus, President of the Protestant Church of Westphalia, who led the service along with Rainer Maria Cardinal Woelki, the Archbishop of Cologne.

Chancellor Angela Merkel and Federal President Joachim Gauck were among the mourners in Cologne, along with Bundestag President Norbert Lammert and Bundesrat President Volker Bouffier. Government representatives from Spain and France also attended the memorial service. Hannelore Kraft, State Premier of North Rhine-Westphalia, home to most of the victims, had invited the many mourners to Cologne.

After the service Chancellor Angela Merkel met privately with the families of victims.

On 24 March an Airbus crashed in the southern French Alps en route from Barcelona to Düsseldorf. All 144 passengers and six crew members were killed. Chancellor Angela Merkel expressed her horror. "We cannot begin to fathom the scope of suffering that this disaster has brought to so many families. It is simply inconceivable," she said following the disaster. She visited the crash site with French President François Hollande and Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy and paid tribute to the victims there. Last Friday Federal Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier paid his respects to the victims of the disaster with his Spanish and French counterparts. Together the ministers of foreign affairs laid a wreath at Barcelona Airport.