Germany – Germanwings Pilot Suffered From Depression, Anxiety But Hid Illness

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    German police officers shield a person leaving the house believed to belong to the parents of crashed Germanwings flight 4U 9524 co-pilot Andreas Lubitz in Montabaur, March 26, 2015. REUTERS/Kai PfaffenbachGermany – The German pilot believed to have deliberately crashed a plane in the French Alps killing 150 people broke off his training six years ago due to depression and spent over a year in psychiatric treatment, a German newspaper reported on Friday.

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    Co-pilot Andreas Lubitz appears to have hidden evidence of the illness from his employers, including having been excused by a doctor from work the day he crashed a passenger plane into a mountain, prosecutors said Friday.

    The evidence came from the search of Lubitz’s homes in two German cities for an explanation of why he crashed the Airbus A320 into the French Alps, killing all 150 people on board.

    Prosecutor’s spokesman Ralf Herrenbrueck said in a written statement that torn-up sick notes for the day of the crash “support the current preliminary assessment that the deceased hid his illness from his employer and colleagues.”

    Such sick notes from doctors excusing employees from work are common in Germany and issued even for minor illnesses. Herrenbrueck didn’t reveal details of what illness Lubitz was suffering from.

    Herrenbrueck said other medical documents found indicated “an existing illness and appropriate medical treatment,” but that no suicide note was found. He added there was no indication of any political or religious motivation for Lubitz’s actions.

    Germanwings, a subsidiary of Lufthansa, refused to comment on the new information.

    Investigators had removed multiple boxes of items from Lubitz’s apartment in Duesseldorf and his parents’ house in Montabaur, near Frankfurt.

    A German aviation official told The Associated Press that Lubitz’s file at the country’s Federal Aviation Office contained a “SIC” note, meaning that he needed “specific regular medical examination.” Such a note could refer to either a physical or mental condition, but the official — who spoke only on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to release the information, said the note does not specify which.

    However, neighbors described a man whose physical health was superb.

    “He definitely did not smoke. He really took care of himself. He always went jogging. I am not sure whether he did marathons, but he was very healthy,” said Johannes Rossmann, who lived a few doors down from Lubitz’s home in Montabaur.

    German news media painted a picture of a man with a history of depression who had received psychological treatment, and who may have been set off by a falling out with his girlfriend. Duesseldorf prosecutors, who are leading the German side of the probe, refused to comment on the anonymously sourced reports, citing the ongoing investigation.

    Lufthansa CEO Carsten Spohr said there was a “several-month” gap in Lubitz’s training six years ago, but would not elaborate. Following the disruption, he said, Lubitz “not only passed all medical tests but also his flight training, all flying tests and checks.”

    The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration had issued Lubitz a third-class medical certificate. In order to obtain such a certificate, a pilot must be cleared of psychological problems including psychosis, bipolar disorder and personality disorder “that is severe enough to have repeatedly manifested itself by overt acts.”

    The certificate also means that he wasn’t found to be suffering from another mental health condition that “makes the person unable to safely perform the duties or exercise the privileges” of a pilot’s license.

    French investigators, who are in charge of the probe into the plane crash, believe the 27-year-old locked himself inside the cockpit and then intentionally smashed the Germanwings plane into a mountainside on Tuesday during a flight from Barcelona to Duesseldorf.

    People in Montabaur who knew Lubitz told AP they were shocked at the allegations that he could have intentionally crashed the plane, saying he had been thrilled with his job at Germanwings and seemed to be “very happy.”

    Germanwings, a low-cost carrier in the Lufthansa Group, said it was setting up a family assistance center in Marseille for relatives of those killed in the crash.

    “In these dark hours our full attention belongs to the emotional support of the relatives and friends of the victims of Flight 9525,” Germanwings CEO Thomas Winkelmann said in a statement.


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    7 Comments
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    9 years ago

    Maddening

    BuckyinWisconsin
    BuckyinWisconsin
    9 years ago

    I read an article that the authorities have proof he was a moooslim convert. Watch for it. If the eurotrash press would even report it. Move along folks, nothing to see here…

    ComeOn
    ComeOn
    9 years ago

    Crashing a plane of people is not anxiety or depression. It is Psychopathic!!!

    Yaakov2
    Yaakov2
    9 years ago

    There is information of which they make no secret of, that they are delibertaly withholding certain facts and details. These are facts which they already know, but are intentionaly NOT telling us.

    What are these “secrets” you may ask?

    The answer is obviouse.

    If it was not something very imbarasing, it would not be secret.
    If he had a green cap, it would not be imbarasing and so such details would not be kept secret.

    If his religion was to be of any normal western religion it would not be shmefull and not be secret.

    But what if he was a Muslim?

    Now, they better make sure to keep his religion a secret because if they disclose the truth everyone will come to obviouse conclusions.

    The same goes for his health. Whats the big secret?

    If his health issue is that he had Strep or a Virus it would not be a shamefull secret. If his health issue is a Mental Disorder? Now they have to keep it a secret.

    So whenever people know something and refuse to talk, the answer is self evident as to why they are “not talking”.

    He was a * * * MUSLIM * * * you can be sure of it!

    Proof is: They refuse to say what race and religion he was.

    Yaakov2
    Yaakov2
    9 years ago

    Is it “merely” Anxiety and or Depression?

    Anxiety or depression only causes people to Kill themselves but it never, ever pushes anyone to Kill 150 people, along with himself unless he religion and upbringing , has indoctrinated him with the “virtue” of mass killings of “infidels”, i.e. the virtue of Killing people who don’t believe in the Muslim religion, which is that standard M.O. of those who preach to Islamists.

    Again, people who have Anxiety and Depression can and do often commit suicide, but they only kill themselves and never attempt to Kill 150 others at the same time.

    Anxiety and Depression alone, without Muslim and Islamist, indoctrination, is no explanation as to why anyone would ever want to kill 150 people, besides himself.

    People with Anxiety and Depression alone, never do such things!

    A person who goes to his Islamists indoctrinator regularly and hears his preaching for years and year, then one day he wants to kill himself, he figures that he may as well do a “big mitzva” at the same time and kill 150 infidels at the same time, too.