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| Germanwings co-pilot worried about job security, officials say | Germanwings co-pilot worried about job security, officials say |
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| MONTABAUR, Germany — The co-pilot who crashed Germanwings Flight 9525 had consulted with several medical professionals about a vision issue that, coupled with preexisting psychological problems, appeared to give him a growing sense of unease about his ability to keep his job, according to officials familiar with the investigation. | MONTABAUR, Germany — The co-pilot who crashed Germanwings Flight 9525 had consulted with several medical professionals about a vision issue that, coupled with preexisting psychological problems, appeared to give him a growing sense of unease about his ability to keep his job, according to officials familiar with the investigation. |
| German police, one official said Sunday, had discovered documents in Andreas Lubitz’s apartment in his handwriting in which he had written short phrases conveying deep stress over vision issues. He appeared to believe those problems were serious enough to challenge his ability to continue working as a commercial pilot — a job that had been the longtime ambition of the reserved 27-year old. | German police, one official said Sunday, had discovered documents in Andreas Lubitz’s apartment in his handwriting in which he had written short phrases conveying deep stress over vision issues. He appeared to believe those problems were serious enough to challenge his ability to continue working as a commercial pilot — a job that had been the longtime ambition of the reserved 27-year old. |
| Although Lubitz did not keep a diary, the papers made clear that he was concerned about his future. He had consulted with several medical professionals about the issue, and investigators are examining the medical records that they have collected from doctors, the official said. A second official familiar with the investigation said German authorities, in their searches of Lubitz’s homes and belongings, also found prescription medications that showed he was being treated for psychological problems. Both officials agreed to talk on the condition of anonymity because the investigation is ongoing. | Although Lubitz did not keep a diary, the papers made clear that he was concerned about his future. He had consulted with several medical professionals about the issue, and investigators are examining the medical records that they have collected from doctors, the official said. A second official familiar with the investigation said German authorities, in their searches of Lubitz’s homes and belongings, also found prescription medications that showed he was being treated for psychological problems. Both officials agreed to talk on the condition of anonymity because the investigation is ongoing. |
| But investigators so far have discovered few obvious signs that he was contemplating suicide or a deliberate crashing of a plane, and one working theory is that it was a crime of opportunity. When Flight 9525’s more experienced pilot left the cockpit to go to the bathroom, one possibility is that Lubitz may have made a sudden decision to crash the plane, the official said. | But investigators so far have discovered few obvious signs that he was contemplating suicide or a deliberate crashing of a plane, and one working theory is that it was a crime of opportunity. When Flight 9525’s more experienced pilot left the cockpit to go to the bathroom, one possibility is that Lubitz may have made a sudden decision to crash the plane, the official said. |
| Investigators are still examining Lubitz’s voluminous electronic trail, which is contained on an iPad, an iPhone and a computer. But nothing in Lubitz’s electronic history points toward the fatal incident, the official said. | Investigators are still examining Lubitz’s voluminous electronic trail, which is contained on an iPad, an iPhone and a computer. But nothing in Lubitz’s electronic history points toward the fatal incident, the official said. |
| French investigators are working alongside their German counterparts in Düsseldorf, the official said. U.S. officials are also assisting from afar, since U.S. citizens died in the attack. The U.S. investigators have been particularly helpful in tracking down Lubitz’s trail on Facebook, since they have better access to the U.S.-based social network than their European counterparts. | French investigators are working alongside their German counterparts in Düsseldorf, the official said. U.S. officials are also assisting from afar, since U.S. citizens died in the attack. The U.S. investigators have been particularly helpful in tracking down Lubitz’s trail on Facebook, since they have better access to the U.S.-based social network than their European counterparts. |
| On Sunday, Germany’s Bild newspaper disclosed new details about the “black box” recordings of the Airbus A320 from Barcelona to Düsseldorf that crashed Tuesday in the French Alps. | |
| Early on, the flight’s captain is heard apologizing to passengers for a delayed takeoff. Roughly 20 minutes later, the pilot is heard talking to Lubitz and he mentions that he did not make it to the bathroom in Barcelona before the flight. Lubitz — who, investigators say, initiated the fatal descent after the pilot left the cockpit — is heard saying that he is willing to take over at any time. | |
| At one point, according to Bild, the pilot asks Lubitz to prepare for the flight’s landing in Düsseldorf. Lubitz is heard to respond oddly, using conditional phrasing about the landing, such as “hopefully” and “we’ll see.” | |
| The pilot is heard exiting the cockpit and later attempts to get back in but is locked out. As the pilot grows more desperate to reenter the cockpit, a loud bang is heard as he appears to be trying to break down the door. The captain is heard shouting, “for God’s sake, open the door.” Although French prosecutors have said that passengers screams were heard shortly before the crash, the Bild report suggests that the pilot’s frantic attempts to get back into the cockpit had caused audible alarm on board. | |
| Five days after the crash, the picture emerging of Lubitz is one of a haunted man, whose ambition to fly brought him both pleasure and torment. Authorities now believe he was hiding a long-term psychological illness from Germanwings, the budget arm of the German carrier, Lufthansa. They have found sick notes from doctors, torn up and rumpled, stating that he was unfit for work, including on the day of the crash. The writings found among his belongings, officials say, also confirmed that he was in a deeply depressed state of mind. | Five days after the crash, the picture emerging of Lubitz is one of a haunted man, whose ambition to fly brought him both pleasure and torment. Authorities now believe he was hiding a long-term psychological illness from Germanwings, the budget arm of the German carrier, Lufthansa. They have found sick notes from doctors, torn up and rumpled, stating that he was unfit for work, including on the day of the crash. The writings found among his belongings, officials say, also confirmed that he was in a deeply depressed state of mind. |
| For years, flying had been a major motivation in Lubitz’s life. One year before he made the cut for Lufthansa’s elite flying school, Lubitz worked at a Burger King behind a carwash, flipping Whoppers and frying fries and talking to co-workers about his dream. | For years, flying had been a major motivation in Lubitz’s life. One year before he made the cut for Lufthansa’s elite flying school, Lubitz worked at a Burger King behind a carwash, flipping Whoppers and frying fries and talking to co-workers about his dream. |
| One day, he told them, he would fly commercial jetliners. | One day, he told them, he would fly commercial jetliners. |
| That dream finally started to come together in 2008, when Lubitz left for Bremen, Germany, and then traveled to Phoenix to attend one of the industry’s most rigorous training programs for airline pilots. But by 2009, Lubitz had walked out of the program he had fought so hard to attend, taking several months off and coming back to his home town. During that hiatus, Detlef Adolf — general manager at the Burger King here and Lubitz’s former boss — remembers his onetime employee stopping by the restaurant, buying a meal and sharing his distressing news. | That dream finally started to come together in 2008, when Lubitz left for Bremen, Germany, and then traveled to Phoenix to attend one of the industry’s most rigorous training programs for airline pilots. But by 2009, Lubitz had walked out of the program he had fought so hard to attend, taking several months off and coming back to his home town. During that hiatus, Detlef Adolf — general manager at the Burger King here and Lubitz’s former boss — remembers his onetime employee stopping by the restaurant, buying a meal and sharing his distressing news. |
| “He had come back because he said the pressure was too great,” Adolf said Saturday. | “He had come back because he said the pressure was too great,” Adolf said Saturday. |
| On Saturday, Bild quoted an interview with a former girlfriend of Lubitz’s. She described a man who suffered from vivid nightmares and delusions of grandeur. | |
| “At night, he woke up and screamed: ‘We’re going down!’ because he had nightmares,” the former girlfriend told Bild. “He knew how to hide from other people what was really going on with him.” | “At night, he woke up and screamed: ‘We’re going down!’ because he had nightmares,” the former girlfriend told Bild. “He knew how to hide from other people what was really going on with him.” |
| She added that last year he had warned, “One day, I will do something that will change the whole system, and then everybody will know my name and remember it.” | She added that last year he had warned, “One day, I will do something that will change the whole system, and then everybody will know my name and remember it.” |
| But a Germanwings colleague who worked with Lubitz said the co-pilot had recently seemed to be thinking about his long-term future. Frank Woiton, a pilot who three weeks ago flew with Lubitz from Düsseldorf to Vienna and back, told the German broadcaster WDR that Lubitz said he wanted eventually to pilot a massive long-haul jetliner. Such flights on an Airbus A380 or Boeing 747 are normally the domain of pilots who have put in decades with airlines. | But a Germanwings colleague who worked with Lubitz said the co-pilot had recently seemed to be thinking about his long-term future. Frank Woiton, a pilot who three weeks ago flew with Lubitz from Düsseldorf to Vienna and back, told the German broadcaster WDR that Lubitz said he wanted eventually to pilot a massive long-haul jetliner. Such flights on an Airbus A380 or Boeing 747 are normally the domain of pilots who have put in decades with airlines. |
| “He wasn’t a person who you thought would commit suicide,” Woiton said. “He seemed very happy, and he wanted to become a captain for long-distance flights. He was very good at his job.” | “He wasn’t a person who you thought would commit suicide,” Woiton said. “He seemed very happy, and he wanted to become a captain for long-distance flights. He was very good at his job.” |
| Here in his hilly home town in southwestern Germany, a city of 13,000 dotted with traditional houses and well-tended lawns, the mood shifted between denial and sorrow over a local boy who had made good. | Here in his hilly home town in southwestern Germany, a city of 13,000 dotted with traditional houses and well-tended lawns, the mood shifted between denial and sorrow over a local boy who had made good. |
| His public face was that of a healthy young man. A marathon runner and indoor rock climber, he seemed “normal,” many here said, in every way. Indeed, many in this town still refuse to believe the picture being painted of him as a deeply troubled soul who purposely ended his life and those of 149 others. | His public face was that of a healthy young man. A marathon runner and indoor rock climber, he seemed “normal,” many here said, in every way. Indeed, many in this town still refuse to believe the picture being painted of him as a deeply troubled soul who purposely ended his life and those of 149 others. |
| “It’s not right to say these things about him. He’s dead; he can’t defend himself,” said a woman at the front desk of the gym where Lubitz worked out, Fit-Up Sportcenter. | “It’s not right to say these things about him. He’s dead; he can’t defend himself,” said a woman at the front desk of the gym where Lubitz worked out, Fit-Up Sportcenter. |
| One fellow pilot recalled, the rugged zone of the crash site was long familiar to Lubitz — he had overflown the same mountainous region with members of his local flight club years before. | One fellow pilot recalled, the rugged zone of the crash site was long familiar to Lubitz — he had overflown the same mountainous region with members of his local flight club years before. |
| Bernd Juhn, 50, a sales representative and member of the LSC Westerwald flight club here where the Germanwings co-pilot was also a member, said that Lubitz had joined the group for at least one of its recreational aviation trips to Sisteron, France, in the mid-2000s. The Airbus A320 crashed Tuesday in the same rugged region of the French Alps. | Bernd Juhn, 50, a sales representative and member of the LSC Westerwald flight club here where the Germanwings co-pilot was also a member, said that Lubitz had joined the group for at least one of its recreational aviation trips to Sisteron, France, in the mid-2000s. The Airbus A320 crashed Tuesday in the same rugged region of the French Alps. |
| Juhn insisted it was nothing more than a “fatal coincidence.” | Juhn insisted it was nothing more than a “fatal coincidence.” |
| “I know him as an absolutely reliable, friendly young man,” Juhn said. “I don’t believe what people are saying about Andreas. Did you hear the original black-box recording? People jump to conclusions too quickly.” | “I know him as an absolutely reliable, friendly young man,” Juhn said. “I don’t believe what people are saying about Andreas. Did you hear the original black-box recording? People jump to conclusions too quickly.” |
| He said he saw Lubitz for the last time last autumn, when Lubitz was at the club’s deep-green fields on a patch of land near the edge of town for a test flight with a flying teacher — a regular practice at the club. “He told me that he was working as a pilot now, and I was happy for him. He was one of the few young men [at the club] and never stood out in a negative way.” | He said he saw Lubitz for the last time last autumn, when Lubitz was at the club’s deep-green fields on a patch of land near the edge of town for a test flight with a flying teacher — a regular practice at the club. “He told me that he was working as a pilot now, and I was happy for him. He was one of the few young men [at the club] and never stood out in a negative way.” |
| He said Lubitz wasn’t a big talker. “He was a relatively quiet guy.” | He said Lubitz wasn’t a big talker. “He was a relatively quiet guy.” |
| Lubitz was hardly seen as a large presence here, and those who knew him described him as friendly, even bland. He was the kind of guy who would yell “Guten tag!” to neighbors on his morning runs in the upscale neighborhood in this town where he shared a home with his parents. But his neighbors and others who knew him said they wouldn’t describe him as the chatty type. | Lubitz was hardly seen as a large presence here, and those who knew him described him as friendly, even bland. He was the kind of guy who would yell “Guten tag!” to neighbors on his morning runs in the upscale neighborhood in this town where he shared a home with his parents. But his neighbors and others who knew him said they wouldn’t describe him as the chatty type. |
| “He was inconspicuous, normal, nice,” said Michael Dietrich, the pastor at the Luther Church in Montabaur who taught Lubitz’s confirmation class. | “He was inconspicuous, normal, nice,” said Michael Dietrich, the pastor at the Luther Church in Montabaur who taught Lubitz’s confirmation class. |
| Lubitz’s father was in shock and grief at a memorial service in France last week, a French official who met him told a French television station Saturday. | Lubitz’s father was in shock and grief at a memorial service in France last week, a French official who met him told a French television station Saturday. |
| “He was collapsed. Completely shot. On his back he’s carrying all responsibility for this drama. This is a man whose life has been shattered,” Bernard Bartolini, the mayor of the French town of Prads-Haute-Bleone, told BFM TV. “He has lost someone dear to him but also because his son is perhaps the cause of this whole tragedy.” | “He was collapsed. Completely shot. On his back he’s carrying all responsibility for this drama. This is a man whose life has been shattered,” Bernard Bartolini, the mayor of the French town of Prads-Haute-Bleone, told BFM TV. “He has lost someone dear to him but also because his son is perhaps the cause of this whole tragedy.” |
| Mekhennet reported from Frankfurt and Birnbaum from Düsseldorf. Stephanie Kirchner in Montabaur contributed to this report. | Mekhennet reported from Frankfurt and Birnbaum from Düsseldorf. Stephanie Kirchner in Montabaur contributed to this report. |
| Read more | Read more |
| How a pilot can be locked out of the cockpit | How a pilot can be locked out of the cockpit |
| How can airlines prevent crashes like these? | How can airlines prevent crashes like these? |