Lufthansa: Co-pilot disclosed earlier 'severe depression'

[webfact]

Lufthansa: Co-pilot disclosed earlier 'severe depression'
By DAVID McHUGH and JOAN LOWY

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — Lufthansa knew that the co-pilot of the passenger plane that crashed in the French Alps last week had suffered from an episode of "severe depression" before he finished his flight training with the German airline.

The airline said Tuesday that it has found emails that Andreas Lubitz sent to the Lufthansa flight school in 2009 when he resumed his training in Bremen after an interruption of several months.

In them, he informed the school that he had suffered a "previous episode of severe depression," which had since subsided.

The airline said Lubitz subsequently passed all medical checks and that it has provided the documents to prosecutors. It declined to make any further comment.

French authorities say voice recordings indicate Lubitz, 27, locked the other pilot out of the cockpit and deliberately crashed the Airbus A320 in the French Alps on March 24. All 150 people aboard Flight 9525 from Barcelona to Duesseldorf died.

The disclosure that Lubitz had told the airline he had suffered from depression before he was hired in September, 2013 at Lufthansa's budget arm Germanwings is another blow to the company's reputation. Lufthansa CEO Carsten Spohr had said that Lubitz passed all tests and had been pronounced fit to fly.

The revelation adds to questions about how much Lufthansa and its insurers will pay in damages for the passengers who died.

It also underlines questions about how thoroughly the aviation industry and government regulators screen pilots for psychological problems.

German prosecutors say Lubitz received psychotherapy before obtaining his pilot's license and that medical records from that time referred to "suicidal tendencies." They have given no dates for his treatment, but said visits to doctors since then showed no record of any suicidal tendencies or aggression against others.

They also have found torn-up sick notes from doctors, including one that would have kept Lubitz off work on the day of the crash.

The latest disclosure "really does suggest a potential problem with the airline's oversight of this aviator," says Alan E. Diehl, a former air safety investigator with the NTSB and a former scientist for human performance at the Federal Aviation Administration.

Diehl says the global shortage of pilots might be leading to lax hiring standards. Every week, there are nearly 30 new jets rolling off assembly lines. Each one requires airlines to hire and train at least 10 to 12 new pilots.

"Maybe some of these carriers, not just Germanwings, are taking people that they wouldn't normally take," Diehl says.

In the U.S., the Federal Aviation Administration in 2010 starting allowing some pilots who are taking medication for mild to moderate depression to continue flying on a case-by-case basis. Pilots taking drugs like Prozac, Zoloft, Celexa and Lexapro were allowed to fly if granted a special medical certificate. One prerequisite was the successful treatment on the medication for at least 12 months.

Dr. Warren Silberman, manager of medical certification for the FAA until the end of 2011, said pilots in the U.S. can fly again even after having suicidal thoughts.

"It really would depend on what the psychiatrist or psychologist that he saw wrote, and what his symptoms were," Silberman said. "The minute he declares he is depressed, he is grounded. And if he goes on medication, he's definitely grounded."

After treatment, "If you were doing better after the depressive episode and the (doctor's) note was favorable, then the FAA would likely clear you," he said. Admitting suicidal thoughts would probably mean a longer period of being grounded, and the pilot's case would probably wind up in the hands of the FAA's chief psychiatrist in Washington, he said.

Silberman said that over time pilots become more willing to discuss their mental state with their doctors, and there are employee-assistance programs to help them. Still, pilots often hide their medical problems.

Then there's liability.

The fact Lufthansa knew of Lubitz's illness only worsens the airline's legal position, even if cases are settled and not brought to trial.

Airlines on international flights are required to compensate relatives of victims for proven damages of up to a limit of about $157,000 — regardless of what caused the crash. However, higher compensation is possible if a carrier is held liable.

"I think as a practical and legal matter Lufthansa is at this point liable for the accident," said Brian Alexander, an international aviation attorney with Kreindler & Kreindler in New York.

"This makes the case, which was already indefensible, even more so," said Jonathan C. Reiter, a U.S. attorney who has represented family members of a person who died in a 1999 EgyptAir crash investigators say was caused by the co-pilot, as well as people aboard a 2012 JetBlue flight where the pilot had a mental breakdown and had to be restrained. That flight landed safely.

"They're responsible. That's the end of it," said Reiter. "They can't say, we couldn't possibly have known. They did know."

In Frankfurt, Lufthansa spokeswoman Kerstin Lau said insurers have already reserved $300 million to deal with "all costs arising in connection with the case."

Lufthansa offered immediate aid last week of up to 50,000 euros ($54,250) per passenger to relatives of the victims. Those payments are separate from eventual compensation payments.
___

Lowy contributed from Washington, DC. AP staff writers David Koenig in Dallas, Scott Mayerowitz in New York and Geir Moulson in Berlin also contributed.


-- (c) Associated Press 2015-04-01

[Credo]

It's nice that Lufthansa employs people who have received treatment for depression. It's not a good idea to have them in the such a dangerous position at the controls of a plane.

[zydeco]

If this gets into an American court, the jury will bankrupt this airline.

[NeverSure]

If this gets into an American court, the jury will bankrupt this airline.

I know a guy who rightfully got $US10 million dollars because Ford Motor Company did something outrageous in a design defect they knew about that killed his son in a fiery crash.

It's called "punitive damages" which go beyond the real damages. These damages are designed to tell anyone observing to not do anything similar. They can be many multiples of the actual damages. They aren't a fine from the government but there can also be that too.

If this get into a US court the punitive damages will go through the roof. I think there were 3 Americans on the flight?

[Mosha]

BBC reporting that Lufthansa have put 300 Million US$ to one side in preparation of future claims. This was mentioned in the same item as the report on Lufthansa knew about his depression treatment.

[JockPieandBeans]

BBC reporting that Lufthansa have put 300 Million US$ to one side in preparation of future claims. This was mentioned in the same item as the report on Lufthansa knew about his depression treatment.

I think that they had better revise that figure upwards.

$300 Million might just cover the American deaths.

[natway09]

I do though worry about this ongoing litigation over a relative that has been killed.

No matter how much awarded it is not going to bring your loved one back & the monies will ease the heartache??????

[lostinisaan]

German prosecutors say Lubitz received psychotherapy before obtaining his pilot's license and that medical records from that time referred to "suicidal tendencies." They have given no dates for his treatment, but said visits to doctors since then showed no record of any suicidal tendencies or aggression against others.

I can't believe that they let this guy even close to an airplane. A guy with such a history wouldn't be allowed to drive a cab in Germany.

Just thinking about the pilot begging him to open the door and the passengers' feelings makes me feel sick and sad.

But the parents must have been aware of his mental issues. Hope they'll all rest in peace.

Those who'd lost a relative, or friend will still need a while to understand that they'll never see their loved ones again.

Edited April 1, 2015 by lostinisaan

[trainman34014]

This could be the beginning of the end of Lufthansa in the same way Lockerbie was the beginning of the end for Pan-am.

I simply cannot see Lufthansa being able to justify the use of a known Suicidal Manic Depressive anywhere near an aircraft cockpit. Lawyers are going to have a field day.

[hawker9000]

I do though worry about this ongoing litigation over a relative that has been killed.

No matter how much awarded it is not going to bring your loved one back & the monies will ease the heartache??????

Brother has THAT train left the station! But to be fair, some victims may have been breadwinners and/or had a lifetime of earnings ahead of them. That's a loss to the family/inheritors - someone has to make good on it. And THEN there's the question of punitive damages as another poster mentioned.

I'm shocked that this guy was flying. I would've expected more from the German air transport industry. Very tragic; very disappointing.

[Johnny S]

Lufthansa put a potentiel massmurderer in control and think 300 mill. USD is enough to cover damages etc.

[pacovl46]

German prosecutors say Lubitz received psychotherapy before obtaining his pilot's license and that medical records from that time referred to "suicidal tendencies." They have given no dates for his treatment, but said visits to doctors since then showed no record of any suicidal tendencies or aggression against others.

I can't believe that they let this guy even close to an airplane. A guy with such a history wouldn't be allowed to drive a cab in Germany.

Just thinking about the pilot begging him to open the door and the passengers' feelings makes me feel sick and sad.

But the parents must have been aware of his mental issues. Hope they'll all rest in peace.

Those who'd lost a relative, or friend will still need a while to understand that they'll never see their loved ones again.

Lots of people who suffered from depression got over it and live normal lives again. Why shouldn't they be allowed to work? Just because they were depressed doesn't equal them becoming serial killers.

[lostinisaan]

This could be the beginning of the end of Lufthansa in the same way Lockerbie was the beginning of the end for Pan-am.

I simply cannot see Lufthansa being able to justify the use of a known Suicidal Manic Depressive anywhere near an aircraft cockpit. Lawyers are going to have a field day.

It hopefully will be their end. They did many strange things that I started to refuse buying tickets from them.

One disgusting part was that they put many more seats in the aircraft that most people had almost no space for their legs.

When I had to fly to Germany, through some necessary medical treatment in form of an artificial knee joint in Germany,after a bike accident, where the Thai hospital had messed it up, some operations were needed because of an bacterial infection, from this hospital.

I'd sent Lufthansa a note, together with a letter from the hospital, explaining the circumstances, wanting a date to fly back to Thailand one month later.

They refused to do so and where even impertinent enough to offer to buy a new ticket from them. Never ever again.

[lostinisaan]

German prosecutors say Lubitz received psychotherapy before obtaining his pilot's license and that medical records from that time referred to "suicidal tendencies." They have given no dates for his treatment, but said visits to doctors since then showed no record of any suicidal tendencies or aggression against others.

I can't believe that they let this guy even close to an airplane. A guy with such a history wouldn't be allowed to drive a cab in Germany.

Just thinking about the pilot begging him to open the door and the passengers' feelings makes me feel sick and sad.

But the parents must have been aware of his mental issues. Hope they'll all rest in peace.

Those who'd lost a relative, or friend will still need a while to understand that they'll never see their loved ones again.

Lots of people who suffered from depression got over it and live normal lives again. Why shouldn't they be allowed to work? Just because they were depressed doesn't equal them becoming serial killers.

"Suffering from depression" of "ordinary folks" and "suicidal thoughts" being the Co-pilot of a big aircraft are two different shoes.

"Just because he was so depressed and suicidal allowed him to become a serial killer where so many innocent people lost their lives"

I don't have a problem when it's about a factory worker, or a janitor. But not when people have other peoples' lives in their hand.

And I also blame the parents of this freak that they knew all, but didn't interfere.

But also Lufthansa, the doctors and those who're involved that this guy was allowed to continue working, after all these occurrences.

I assume that no relative or friend of yours sat on the plane. What if so? Have you ever thought this way?

Edited April 1, 2015 by lostinisaan

[mrdome]

This could be the beginning of the end of Lufthansa in the same way Lockerbie was the beginning of the end for Pan-am.

I simply cannot see Lufthansa being able to justify the use of a known Suicidal Manic Depressive anywhere near an aircraft cockpit. Lawyers are going to have a field day.

Let's not get carried away here. No, it won't be Lufthansa's end - that's my prediction. JetBlue let that pilot fly also, who just recently had to be restrained by passengers by his passengers while shouting about "jihad". Sure, nobody got killed but that flight certainly wasn't safe at all.

The problem with this argumentation is that you all want your privacy protected as far as medical info is concerned if it came to it but in a case like this, that all goes out the window right away. It's always different for us, isn't it?

In the end, there is only so much you know about a person as the employer/friend/acquaintance, even their doctor.

[NeverSure]

I do though worry about this ongoing litigation over a relative that has been killed.

No matter how much awarded it is not going to bring your loved one back & the monies will ease the heartache??????

Brother has THAT train left the station! But to be fair, some victims may have been breadwinners and/or had a lifetime of earnings ahead of them. That's a loss to the family/inheritors - someone has to make good on it. And THEN there's the question of punitive damages as another poster mentioned.

I'm shocked that this guy was flying. I would've expected more from the German air transport industry. Very tragic; very disappointing.

My guess it that there will be "actual damages" which are the things you mentioned and there's also compensation for the emotional damages to the loved ones. These are going to be big numbers and then the punitive damages are likely to be multiples of that.

Anyone who can get standing to file in the US...

[hawker9000]

German prosecutors say Lubitz received psychotherapy before obtaining his pilot's license and that medical records from that time referred to "suicidal tendencies." They have given no dates for his treatment, but said visits to doctors since then showed no record of any suicidal tendencies or aggression against others.

I can't believe that they let this guy even close to an airplane. A guy with such a history wouldn't be allowed to drive a cab in Germany.

Just thinking about the pilot begging him to open the door and the passengers' feelings makes me feel sick and sad.

But the parents must have been aware of his mental issues. Hope they'll all rest in peace.

Those who'd lost a relative, or friend will still need a while to understand that they'll never see their loved ones again.

Lots of people who suffered from depression got over it and live normal lives again. Why shouldn't they be allowed to work? Just because they were depressed doesn't equal them becoming serial killers.

There are some positions of special responsibility, and public transportation is definitely one of them. If competent medical authority can and does certify an individual such as this to be able to return to work, that's one thing. But if the ability to make such a determination reliably simply doesn't exist OR the individual concerned hasn't received such a clearance, then he has no business flying planes, driving trains or buses, and a multitude of other things. That's just the way it has to be. The public has a right to expect that they won't be guinea pigs in some social experiment or held hostage to political correctness.

[lostinisaan]

Okay, this one's already three days old, but says it all.

"For God's sake, open the door!"

Medical record emerging

Much attention has focused on Lubitz's state of mind, with suggestions that he may have had mental health issues.

Lubitz, 27, passed his annual pilot recertification medical examination in summer 2014, a German aviation source told CNN. He had stated working as a commercial pilot in 2013, Lufthansa said.

An official with Lufthansa, which owns Germanwings, said that the exam only tests physical health, not psychological health.

Please read more here:

http://edition.cnn.com/2015/03/30/europe/france-germanwings-plane-crash-main/

Lubitz had visited an eye doctor because of vision problems, a European government official familiar with the investigation told CNN.

The pilot complained he was not seeing as he should, but the doctor told him the cause was psychosomatic, the official said. In part because of this, the doctor deemed Lubitz unfit for flying.

Lubitz told a different doctor -- a neuropsychologist -- that he was too stressed with work, the European official said.

That's really scary////

Edited April 2, 2015 by lostinisaan

[hawker9000]

Okay, this one's already three days old, but says it all.

"For God's sake, open the door!"

Medical record emerging

Much attention has focused on Lubitz's state of mind, with suggestions that he may have had mental health issues.

Lubitz, 27, passed his annual pilot recertification medical examination in summer 2014, a German aviation source told CNN. He had stated working as a commercial pilot in 2013, Lufthansa said.

An official with Lufthansa, which owns Germanwings, said that the exam only tests physical health, not psychological health.

Please read more here:

http://edition.cnn.com/2015/03/30/europe/france-germanwings-plane-crash-main/

Lubitz had visited an eye doctor because of vision problems, a European government official familiar with the investigation told CNN.

The pilot complained he was not seeing as he should, but the doctor told him the cause was psychosomatic, the official said. In part because of this, the doctor deemed Lubitz unfit for flying.

Lubitz told a different doctor -- a neuropsychologist -- that he was too stressed with work, the European official said.

That's really scary////

'Saw this discussed on Meet the Press on Sunday, and I buy the upshot. Airline pilot physicals, apart from some personal Q &A, just simply don't, and can't, address issues of mental fitness to any appreciable degree. It's more completely addressed during the hiring process, but even that is more of a "personality inventory".

I think the pilot screening process that occurs during hiring is somewhat akin to the process for getting an advanced security clearance. The latter can be exhaustingly thorough and certainly intrusive, and STILL security violations occur. The individuals and agencies performing these security screenings have far more latitude and resources available in conducting them than an interviewing psychologist for an airline is ever going to have. Maybe someday they'll be able to attach electrodes to your head and determine that you're a suicide and mass-murder risk in a few minutes, but I don't think there's any generally applicable ability to make such a determination about someone today, and such determinations are usually arrived at either as the result of self-reporting or a behavioral history.

From what I've seen recently, it seems Lubitz' mental unfitness was known to doctors who had examined him, but Lubitz successfully hid this from the airline (despite disclosure requirements). You could require MDs (and any mental health professionals) to report the mental condition of an airline pilot to appropriate authority when applicable, but what if the MD isn't aware that his patient is a professional pilot? Should mental health professionals just report everyone with mental issues, and let the government figure out whether it's applicable to anything or not? No thank-you. Governments have proven they can not be trusted with such information on any widespread basis (either its valid use OR its safekeeping), it's a fundamental violation of doctor-patient privilege that might keep many people in genuine need of treatment away from doctors, and there needs to be a good reason to have their privacy violated and such information about them disclosed to the government or any third party for that matter.

Edited April 2, 2015 by hawker9000