Crash of confidence

The crash of a Germanwings passenger plane, in which all 150 persons aboard were killed, seemed inexplicable till investigators said that First Officer Andreas Lubitz, Flight 9525's co-pilot, had deliberately flown the plane into the French Alps at high speed. The swift analysis of the voice-recorder data by the investigators points to a situation in which the passengers were unaware of their impending deaths till virtually the last minute. However, the plane's captain, who had left the cockpit, could be heard pleading to be let in. 

Pilots do leave the cockpit from time to time for various reasons, and there was no rule for European airlines that stipulated that someone else to be in the cockpit during the absence of one of the pilots. Airlines across Europe are swiftly responding to the concerns of the public by tightening up the cockpit rules to require two people in the cockpit at all times, as has been the norm in the US and several other countries, post 9/11. While terrorism has been ruled out as a motive, Lubitz is said to have suffered from depression. However, according to the airline, he passed all his tests. This will certainly call for a revaluation of the procedures that are used. The recovery of the flight data recorder is expected to help in providing a clearer picture of what exactly happened after the flight took off from Barcelona in Spain till it crashed. 

Statistically, air travel remains the safest mode of travelling, but this provides little comfort to the families of passengers and crew members who mourn the loss of their loved ones. Airlines and regulators will be hard-pressed to find ways to reassure travellers, whose confidence has been shaken by air crashes caused by unusual circumstances, including the missile attack that downed a passenger airline over Ukraine, the disappearance of Malaysian Airline flight 370, and now, the deliberate downing of Flight 9525.