Paris: Eleven people were killed when a small plane crashed in the northeastern French town of Tomblaine on Sunday, the local prefecture said.

The plane belonged to a parachutist school. The pilot and all 10 passengers - five students and five instructors - died in the accident, the prefecture said.

The French interior minister was on his way to the scene, the interior ministry said.

Yves Seguy, the regional prefect, told broadcaster BFM the aircraft appeared to suffer damage before plunging vertically to the ground. The crash occurred in a built-up area near a shopping centre.

"Give or take a few meters and the accident could have caused collateral casualties," Seguy said.

The local prosecutor did not immediately respond to a request for comment.