Co-pilot deliberately crashed Flight 9525

Black box data reveals pilot was locked out of cockpit

THE CO-PILOT of the doomed Germanwings Airbus A320 locked his captain out of the cockpit before deliberately crashing into a mountain to “destroy the plane”, it was sensationally revealed yesterday.

French prosecutor Brice Robin gave chilling details of the final 10 minutes in the cockpit before the Airbus A320 plunged into the French Alps killing 150 people.

Revealing data extracted from the black box voice recorder, he said the co-pilot – named as 28-year-old German Andreas Lubitz – locked his captain out after the senior officer left the cockpit.

At that point, Lubitz uses the flight managing system to put the plane into a descent, something that can only be done manually.

He said: “The intention was to destroy the plane. Death was instant. The plane hit the mountain at 700km/h.

“I don’t think that the passengers realised what was happening until the last moments because on the recording you only hear the screams in the final seconds.”

Earlier in the flight, Robin said Lubitz’s responses, initially courteous, became “curt” when the captain began the mid-flight briefing on the planned landing of the plane.

The captain – named by local media as German father of two Patrick Sonderheimer – then leaves the cockpit but finds he is locked out when he tries to re-enter.

Robin said: “We hear the pilot asking the co-pilot to take over and we hear the sound of a chair being pushed back and a door closing so we assume that the captain went to the toilet or something.

“So the co-pilot is on his own, and it is while he’s on his own that the co-pilot is in charge of the plane and uses the flight monitoring system to start the descent of the plane.

“At this altitude, this can only be done voluntarily. We hear several shouts from the captain asking to get in, speaking through the intercom system, but there’s no answer from the cockpit.”

Robin said Lubitz “voluntarily” refused to open the door and his breathing was normal throughout the final minutes of the flight.

He said: “His breath was not of somebody who was struggling. He never said a single word. It was total silence in the cockpit for the 10 past minutes. Nothing.”

Air Traffic Control at Marseille asks for a distress signal, but there is still no response, said Robin.

“So the plane becomes a priority for a forced landing,” said Robin.

“Control asks other planes to contact this Airbus and no answer is forthcoming. There are alarm systems which indicate to all those on board the proximity of the ground. Then we hear noises of someone trying to break into the door. The door is reinforced according to international standards.”

Robin went on: “Just before final impact we hear the sound of a first impact. It’s believed that the plane may have hit something before the final impact.

“There is no distress signal or mayday signal. No answer was received despite numerous calls from the tower.”

Referring to Lubitz, Robin said: “He did this for a reason which we don’t know why, but we can only deduct that he destroyed this plane. We have asked for information from the German investigation on both his professional and personal background.”

Peter Ruecker, a member of the glider club in Montabaur who watched Lubitz learn to fly, said the Germanwings pilot showed no signs of depression when he saw him last year.

Lubitz’s Facebook page lists his interests as aviation and music, including French DJ David Guetta

Robin said he had no known links with terrorism, adding: “There is no reason to suspect a terrorist attack.”

And asked whether he believed the crash that killed 150 people was the result of sui- cide, he said: “People who commit suicide usually do so alone… I don’t call it a suicide.”

Lubitz had just 600 hours of flying experience after joining Germanwings in 2013 straight from training.

He was, however, highly regarded, having won an award from the Federal Aviation Administration in 2013 for his outstanding flying skills.

A member of the LSC Westerwald flying club in Montabaur, he had a flat in Dusseldorf but also lived in Montabaur where he was raised, a town about 64km south-east of Bonn.

In Montabaur, acquaintances said Lubitz showed no signs of depression when they saw him last year as he renewed his glider pilot’s licence.

“He was happy he had the job with Germanwings and he was doing well,” said a member of the glider club, Peter Ruecker, who watched Lubitz learn to fly. “He gave off a good feeling.”

Lubitz had obtained his glider pilot’s licence as a teenager and was accepted as a Lufthansa pilot trainee after finishing at a tough German college preparatory school, Ruecker said.

He described Lubitz as a “rather quiet” but friendly young man.

A black ribbon bearing the number of the doomed Germanwings flight he was aboard appeared on his flying club’s website.

A tribute to him read: “With great dismay, the members of the LSC Westerwald e.V have heard of the crash of Germanwings flight 4U9525. With horror we acknowledge that among the dead is a longtime member of our association. Andreas died as First Officer on the tragic flight.

“As a teenager Andreas joined our club to realise his dream of flying. He started as a glider student and made it to be a pilot on an Airbus A320.

“It was his dream fulfilled, the dream he so dearly for with his life. The members of the LSC Westerwald mourn Andreas and the other 149 victims of the disaster. Our deepest sympathy goes out to the victims of all nationalities. We will not forget Andreas.'

The investigation is now a full-blown criminal inquiry following revelations of the argument on board. – Daily Mail

‘THE INTENTION WAS TO DESTROY THE PLANE. DEATH WAS INSTANT. THE PLANE HIT THE MOUNTAIN AT 700KM/H.’