Tags: EU | Germanwings | Crash | The Latest

The Latest: Experts: Pilots Still Need Cockpit Protection

The Latest: Experts: Pilots Still Need Cockpit Protection

Sunday, 13 March 2016 07:27 AM EDT

LE BOURGET, France (AP) — The Latest on the French air accident report on the 2015 Germanwings plane crash (all times local):

12:10 p.m.

French investigators say that airplane cockpit rules should not be changed despite a crash by a suicidal Germanwings co-pilot who locked his pilot out of the control room.

The BEA air accident investigation agency said Sunday that it's still just as important to protect the cockpit from attackers elsewhere in the plane. Current cockpits are equipped with a code system to prevent the kind of hijackings that occurred on Sept. 11, 2001, in the United States.

BEA investigator Arnaud Desjardin said "a lockage system cannot be created to prevent threats coming from outside and inside the cockpit."

Many airlines and regulators have issued changes since the March 2015 Germanwings crash in the French Alps and now require at least two people to be in the cockpit at any given time to prevent similar crashes.

11:50 p.m.

French air accident investigators say the pilot certification process failed to identify the risks presented by Germanwings co-pilot Andreas Lubitz.

The BEA investigation agency, in its report on the March 2015 crash, said Lubitz had been referred by a doctor to a psychiatric clinic two weeks before he crashed a plane into the French Alps, killing 150 people.

Arnaud Desjardin, leading the BEA investigation, told reporters that experts found Lubitz's symptoms at that time "could be compatible with a psychotic episode."

He says this information "was not delivered to Germanwings."

11:40 p.m.

French air accident investigators say a doctor referred Germanwings co-pilot Andreas Lubitz to a psychiatric clinic two weeks before he crashed a plane into the French Alps, killing 150 people.

The BEA investigation agency, in releasing a report Sunday on the March 2015 crash, said multiple doctors who treated Lubitz in the weeks before the crash did not inform authorities of concerns about his mental health.

Because Lubitz didn't inform anyone of his doctors' warnings, the BEA said "no action could have been taken by the authorities or his employer to prevent him from flying."

Investigators found that Lubitz intentionally crashed Flight 9525 en route from Barcelona to Duesseldorf.

The BEA investigation is separate from a manslaughter investigation by French prosecutors seeking to determine eventual criminal responsibility for the crash.

11:25 a.m.

French air accident investigators are recommending that world aviation bodies define new rules to require that medical professionals warn authorities when a pilot's mental health could threaten public safety.

The recommendation comes after a Germanwings co-pilot deliberately crashed a jet into the French Alps last year, killing 150 people.

The BEA investigation agency released a report Sunday into the Germanwings crash with several recommendations to avoid such accidents in the future, notably about pilot mental health and screening before a pilot is certified.

Germanwings co-pilot Andreas Lubitz had been treated for depression in the past, and the investigation found that he had consulted dozens of doctors in the weeks before the crash.

9:15 a.m.

French air accident investigators are issuing a report Sunday about what led to the March 2015 Germanwings jet crash — and their recommendations on how to prevent a repeat scenario.

Investigators say co-pilot Andreas Lubitz intentionally crashed the plane into the French Alps, killing all 150 people on board Flight 9525 from Barcelona to Duesseldorf. Most victims were German and Spanish.

The report is likely to address cockpit door rules, because Lubitz locked the pilot out of the cockpit thanks to measures introduced to prevent attackers from accessing a plane's controls. It is also expected to recommend tougher reporting requirements for pilots' doctors and urge relaxing medical privacy restrictions in cases of a threat to public safety.

© Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.


Europe
The Latest on the French air accident report on the 2015 Germanwings plane crash (all times local):12:10 p.m.French investigators say that airplane cockpit rules should not be changed despite a crash by a suicidal Germanwings co-pilot who locked his pilot out of the control...
EU,Germanwings,Crash,The Latest
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2016-27-13
Sunday, 13 March 2016 07:27 AM
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