38 AVIATION WEEK & SPACE TECHNOLOGY/MARCH 30-APRIL 12, 2015 AviationWeek.com/awstJens Flottau FrankfurtDeliberate Descent
Recent A320 crash deemed pilot-initiated,
spurring debates about cockpit procedures
I
t took criminal investigators less
than 48 hr. to determine the likely
cause of the Germanwings Flight
9525 disaster. They say they are cer-
tain the first officer “deliberately
crashed” the Airbus A320 into the
side of a mountain, an event that will
raise questions about psychological
oversight of pilots and cockpit access.dent investigation bureau. He bases
his conclusion on a number of factors,
leading with the first ofcer not allow-
ing the captain back into the cockpit,
followed by a controlled descent that
seems consistent with a deliberate act.
If Robin’s theory is confirmed, the
industry could be facing a debate as to
whether introduction of secure cockpit
doors, initiated after the 9/11 terroristThere are now at least four crashes
since 1994 that investigators believe can
likely be attributed to deliberate pilot
action (see sidebar). The Linhas Aereas
de Mocambique (LAM) Embraer 190
crash in November 2013 mirrors the
Germanwings’ sequence of events.
Deliberate action by pilots is also one
of the theories behind the disappear-
ance of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370.
The circumstances surrounding the
demise of Flight 4U 9525 also raise the
question of mandating regular psycho-
logical checks in tandem with annual
medical checks for pilots, and have
opened debates into other procedures
to help pinpoint suicide-prone crew.
Processes vary from airline to air-
line. In the Lufthansa Group, pilots are
examined by psychologists when they
are selected, but there are no further
checks. An informal system is in place
in which colleagues can file comments
or complaints in case of unusual be-
havior, but company insiders say these
channels are rarely used.
EasyJet and Norwegian Air Shuttle
are the first European airlines to revise
cockpit procedure. They now require
two crewmembers in the cockpit at
all times. If one pilot exits, he must be
replaced by a relief pilot or cabin crew
member.
The aircraft took off as Flight 4U
9525 from Barcelona at 10:01 a.m. local
time on March 24. The aircraft reached
its cruising altitude of 38,000 ft. at
10:27. Its last air trafc control (ATC)
contact took place at 10:30 a.m. and
was a routine communication which
cleared the aircraft for the IRMAR
waypoint around 25 nm south of Bar-
celonnette, France. One minute later
the aircraft began its unexpected de-
scent, losing approximately 30,000 ft.
in altitude in 8 min.—a relatively steep
drop, but well within the aircraft’s nor-
mal flight envelope. The last recorded
altitude was 6,175 ft., slightly higher
than where the aircraft crashed into a
mountain. All 150 people onboard died.
The 28-year-old first ofcer, Andreas
Lubritz, had only 630 airline flight
hours. He was trained by Lufthansa
and began flying as a first ofcer on the
A320 family in September 2013. Accord-
ing to Spohr, Lubritz had to interrupt
his training for several months. Reasons
for the interruption were not given, but
industry sources say they were “medi-
cal.” He had no issues during his time as
a line pilot, the sources add.
Robin confirmed that the two pilotsCOMMERCIAL AVIATIONPAUL BANNWARTH/AIRLINERSGALLERY.COMThe aircraft—D-AIPX—that crashed in the French Alps was delivered new to
Lufthansa in 1991 and has been operated by Germanwings since 2014.XINHUA/LANDOV
Flight 9525’s cockpit voice
recorder was located at the crash
scene. Although it was signifi-
cantly deformed, BEA investiga-
tors extracted an intact audio file.Brice Robin, the Marseille-based
criminal prosecutor in charge of the
case, revealed the conclusions at a
March 26 briefing. Robin, who has had
full access to the audio file found on the
cockpit voice recorder recovered only
hours after the crash, revealed evidence
that he believes proves the first ofcer
was alone on the flight deck, alive, and
not incapacitated during the flight’s fa-
tal descent.
Robin works independently of and
in parallel with the French air acci-attacks in the U.S., has created a safety
issue in and of itself.
The A320 cockpit door can be opened
from outside using an emergency code
entered into a keypad. At Lufthansa and
Germanwings, pilots and cabin crew are
aware of the code. Once entered, the
door can be opened from outside after
about 30 sec., but this can be overridden
from inside the cockpit by moving the
door button to the locked position. The
first ofcer could have used this device
to ensure his plan was carried out.