Sad anniversary: ​​How the Germanwings crash shook our trust

On March 24, 2015, Germanwings Flight 9525 crashed in the French Alps with 150 people on board. The co-pilot Andreas Lubitz intentionally steered the plane into the rock massif, resulting in a tragic accident in which 149 people died. Lubitz, who was alone in the cockpit for the last ten minutes of the flight, is said to have suffered from suspected psychotic depression. According to reports, he had found out about various suicide methods on the Internet and had experienced depressive episodes during his pilot training as early as 2008, which led to him having to temporarily interrupt his training.

The Lubitz family presented a report in 2017 that cited technical failure as the cause of the crash. Nevertheless, the Düsseldorf public prosecutor's office closed its investigation in 2017 without finding any foul play. The Marseille public prosecutor's office also came to the same conclusion in 2022. In the weeks before the crash, Lubitz suffered from delusions and took psychotropic drugs and sleeping pills, but did not submit sick notes to Germanwings or consider a referral to a psychiatric day clinic. His diary entries, which were found during an apartment search, document his psychological problems, including imbalance, sleep problems and depression. In these entries he said that he no longer saw any way out and asked for help against his “evil thoughts”.

Changes in aviation safety

After the accident, control over the mental health of pilots was increased; Random testing was introduced and five specialized aeromedical centers were created in Germany that carry out comprehensive psychological examinations for prospective pilots. In addition, the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) introduced a “Mental Health Assessment”, which consists of several questionnaires. Experts emphasize that pilots suffer from mental health disorders at similar rates to the general population, and the Antiskid peer program was introduced to help affected pilots receive treatment and return to work. Between 2016 and summer 2022, 145 people were treated through the Antiskid program, with a success rate of 75%.

The emotional consequences of the crash are serious: the victims' relatives filed a lawsuit against the Federal Aviation Authority, and processing times at the authority have since increased, increasing pilots' fear of speaking openly about their problems. Although passengers can get on the plane with a good feeling, 100% safety cannot be guaranteed, as faz.net and [merkur.de].