Andreas Lubitz runs the Airportrace half marathon in Hamburg in this September 13, 2009 file photo.
IN PHOTO: Andreas Lubitz runs the Airportrace half marathon in Hamburg in this September 13, 2009 file photo. The co-pilot who appears to have deliberately crashed Germanwings plane carrying 149 passengers into the French Alps received psychiatric treatment for a "serious depressive episode" six years ago, German tabloid Bild reported on March 27, 2015. Prosecutors in France, after listening to the cockpit voice recorders, offered no motive for why Andreas Lubitz, 27, would take the controls of the Airbus A320, lock the captain out of the cockpit and deliberately set it veering down from cruising altitude at 3,000 feet per minute. REUTERS/Foto-Team-Mueller

Andreas Lubitz, the co-pilot of the ill-fated Germanwings Airbus A320, made several rehearsals of descending the passenger jet to 100 feet before finally plunging the aircraft towards the French Alps, killing 150 people on board, according to a report released on Wednesday. Experts from BEA, France’s civil aviation agency conducting an interim investigation, offered additional details on what transpired on March 24.

The report said that Lubitz took advantage of an earlier flight bound for Barcelona on that same day to test the Airbus A320’s autopilot control settings in descending the passenger aircraft to as low as 100 feet. He was alone inside the cockpit for less than five minutes and the practice lasted only for a few seconds, which could hardly move the plane. And before the change could even be detected, Lubitz quickly restored the settings to its proper coordinates.

Timing was also right when the co-pilot made the rehearsals because as what BEA director Remi Jouty said, the test was initiated to coincide with requests made by air control to lower the Airbus A320’s altitude as it descended towards Barcelona. Peter Pletschacher from German Aviation Writers Association said the air-traffic control had no way of detecting the change.

“The captain didn't realize at all, because the co-pilot's tests during the outgoing flight took place during a normal, pre-programmed descent and it never had an impact on the plane's trajectory,” said Remi Jouty.

Ulterior Motive

Experts from BEA remarked a pilot would not change the control settings several times to dramatically affect the altitude for no reason. In a 30-page report, it was discovered that Lubitz changed the control settings when the command from air-traffic controllers was to gradually bring the Airbus A320 to 21,000 feet from 35,000 feet as it landed in Barcelona.

During the flight to Barcelona from Duesseldorf, the co-pilot locked the Airbus A320’s cockpit door when the pilot went to the toilet and ignored calls made by air-traffic controllers. He then set the control settings of the doomed aircraft to 100-foot altitude for a sharp dive at the French Alps. Pletschacher said Lubitz deliberately crashed Flight 9525 with prior planning. It was “no” spontaneous action according to him.

Follow the full report here.

For comments or feedback, contact the writer at kizmet@ymail.com.

RELATED STORIES