KEY EVENTS SO FAR
Report recommendations 'cannot be 100 per cent effective bar...
Report recommends allowing doctors to pass on medical inform..
Lubitz was suffering 'psychotic depressive episode'
Initial psychological tests 'showed no issues'
Lubitz first underwent a psychological assessment with Lufthansa in April 2008 before beginning flight training.
Despite having been diagnosed as suffering suicidal tendencies by a private psychiatrist just two months earlier, no potential mental health issues were raised by the assessment.
The report states: “The psychological and the psychiatric evaluation, required by regulations to be performed during medical examinations, did not indicate any condition that would have made him unfit to fly.”
Co-pilot's family and physicians 'refused to be interviewed'
The report reveals investigators were not able to collect all the information they would have liked as his family and private physicians refused to be interviewed.
The report states: “The limited medical and personal data available to the safety investigation did not make it possible for an unambiguous psychiatric diagnosis to be made.
“In particular an interview with the co-pilot’s relatives and his private physicians was impossible, as they exercised their right to refuse to be interviewed by the BEA and/or the BFU.”
Physician diagnosed possible psychosis two weeks before crash
As revealed in today’s Sunday Mirror, a doctor recommended Lubitz be admitted to a psychiatric hospital two weeks before the flight in which he killed 149 passengers and crew.
The report states: “On 10 March 2015, the same physician diagnosed a possible psychosis and recommended psychiatric hospital treatment.
“A psychiatrist prescribed anti-depressant and sleeping aid medication in February and March 2015. Neither of those health care providers informed any aviation authority, nor any other authority about the co-pilot’s mental state.”
Plane's fatal descent revealed
This diagram featured in the report shows how the plane plummeted from 40,000ft in less than ten minutes.
Lubitz took control of the plane at around 9.32am and the Airbus A320 smashed into the side of the French Alps at 9.41am on March 24, 2015.
Germanwings Germanwings plane crash report
Lubitz made 'no suicide pacts' with psychiatrist
The report into the crash has now been published.
It reveals Andrea Lubitz first suffered from severe depression and psychotic episodes in 2008.
He made several ‘no suicide pacts’ with his psychiatrist - outlining steps he needed to take to help himself if he felt suicidal.
Lubitz did not disclose any history of mental health problems when he applied to become a pilot later that year.
Andreas Lubitz suffered from depression
Press conference comes to a close
The BEA press conference has now come to a close and the full report will be published shortly.
We will bring you the full details from the report as we get them.
11:22
Lubitz lied on initial application
Mr Jouty said Lubitz was first diagnosed with depression before he first applied to become a pilot in 2008.
He was asked to self-declare any history of mental health issues on his application but did not do this.
11:13
'No change recommended on design of door'
Remi Jouty, Director of BEA, is now answering questions from the floor.
He said the report will suggest new rules on more than one person being present in the cockpit at all times - but the safety mechanisms on doors will not be changed.
He said: “The risk of terrorism is always present and the main thing is to protect the cockpit against potential terrorists.”
Report recommendations 'cannot be 100 per cent effective barrier'
Lead investigator Arnaud Desjardin says the report will feature a total of 11 recommendations.
However, he tells the press conference the Germanwings plane crash was in part down to “failings from the pilot” and no recommendations can guarantee such an event could never happen again.
He said: “We are aware the recommendations can improve safety but we cannot suggest this is going to be a 100 per cent effective barrier”.
Rules on pilots being alone in the cockpit
The briefing now moves on to the issue of pilots being alone in the cockpit.
Lubitz was able to crash the plane after locking himself in the cockpit when his captain went to the toilet.
The report accepts it is difficult to create a system which overrides a door being locked from the inside while also protecting against potential acts of terrorism.
10:52
'Once a year checks for pilots with mental health issues'
The report recommends “re-enforcing” psychological evaluations by requiring pilots who have a past history of mental health problems to undergo assessments once a year.
It recommends following the lead of the French rail and nuclear industry by ensuring professionals who are signed off work for treatment continue to receive their full salary to prevent pilots “hiding” their conditions.
Lubitz was mentally ill at the time of the crash
10:42 KEY EVENT
Report recommends allowing doctors to pass on medical information 'to protect public safety'
The first recommendation of the report is revealed as investigators recommend a change in the law to protect doctors who pass on medical information to protect the public.
Mr Jouty says it is important to “strike a balance between patient confidentiality and public safety”.
He adds when doctors believe there is a “likely risk to public safety” that “healthcare providers should be protected to avoid being taken to court when such information is passed on.
“We think this is a global issue”.
The recommendation will be passed on to the World Health Organisation and to the German Transport Ministry and German Doctors Council.
10:35
Doctors 'could have stopped Lubitz'
Mr Jouty goes on to say doctors had information Lubitz was suffering a ‘severe psychological disorder’ which would have prohibited him from flying if known by Germanwings or aviation authorities.
However, he goes on to say the principal of medical non-disclosure by doctors is key to the trust between doctors and patients and should be protected.
10:30 KEY EVENT
Lubitz was suffering 'psychotic depressive episode'
Having reviewed the records of several private physicians Lubitz visited in the months before the crash, medical experts concluded he was suffering from a ‘psychotic depressive episode’.
These diagnoses were not disclosed to Germanwings by doctors or Lubitz himself.
10:27
Lubitz was taking anti-depressants
Remi Jouty, Director of BEA, the French air accident investigation agency, tells the press conference Andreas Lubitz was taking anti-depressants at the time of the tragedy.
Lubitz renewed his aptitude certificate for the last time in November 2014 after which he was signed off on sick leave for a short period.
According to the regulations, Lubitz should have self-declared he was taking anti-depressants and re-taken his aptitude tests when he returned to work. He did not do this.
Sunday PeopleAndreas Lubitz was taking anti-depressants at the time of the crash
10:19
Captain desperately tried to break down cockpit door
Investigators reveal plane captain Patrick Sondenheime used a crowbar and an oxygen tank to attempt to break back into the cockpit.
Several “very violent blows” were recorded as the captain repeatedly smashed the door.
He also made several unanswered calls into the cockpit using the staff intercom system.
10:16
Report recommends more medical checks for pilots
The press conference is told investigators have recommended more medical checks for pilots to prevent mentally ill pilots taking charge of a plane.
Investigators say the aviation industry can learn from other transport bodies such as the rail industry in this area.
10:09
Press conference begins
A press conference which will outline the findings of the report is now underway.
You can watch the media briefing in the live stream above. We will bring you the latest details as they emerge.
10:06
What is likely to be revealed today?
The findings of the report are expected to reveal Lubitz’s doctor was not allowed to alert authorities over the co-pilot’s depression and fears over his future because of Germany’s strict privacy laws.
Lubitz feared his failing eyesight would cost him his career.
A physician advised Lubitz to seek urgent treatment for depression but was not allowed to alert authorities.
One phone call from the doctor to airline Germanwings or medical authorities would have grounded Lubitz, 27.
But he was left free to fly on and carry out his warped mission to kill himself by plane suicide
Desperate captain 'used crowbar and oxygen tank to try to open door'
An interim report into the crash revealed how captain Patrick Sondenheime tried to use a crowbar hidden in the back of the plane to force his way into the cockpit during its terrifying descent.
Lubitz locked the armoured door of the cockpit around two minutes after the captain left the controls to go to the toilet.
Around three minutes after locking the door, Lubitz began the fatal descent.
Germanwings The lock on the cockpit door from the Germanwings plane
09:53
Three Brits died in the crash
Three Britons died in the disaster.
One was Paul Bramley, 28, who was originally from Hull. His father Philip has spoken exclusively to the Sunday Mirror about the imminent release of the report.
He was studying hospitality and hotel management at Cesar Ritz College in Lucerne and was about to start an internship.
Another of the Britons who died was father-of-two Martyn Matthews, 50, a senior quality manager from Wolverhampton.
Also killed was seven-month-old Julian Pracz-Bandres, from Manchester, who died alongside his mother, Spanish-born Marina Bandres Lopez-Belio.
09:47
What happened on the day of the crash?
Here’s a brief summary of what we know so far about what took place on the day of the crash.
On the outbound journey, Andreas Lubitz was co-pilot of a flight from Germany to Spain when he put the Airbus A320 into a decent FIVE times in just four-and-a-half minutes before pulling it up.
On the return journey, the German co-pilot locked his captain out of the cockpit and put the Airbus A320 into a continual descent, with the plane, en route to Dusseldorf from Barcelona.
Recordings revealed passengers and the pilot screaming for Lubitz to open the door as the plane went into a dive at 434mph.
GettyThe Airbus A320 crashed into the side of the French Alps
09:35
Dad of Germanwings victim says son would still be alive if doctor had acted
The dad of one of three British victims of the massacre has said his son would still be alive if doctors had alerted Germanwings to Lubitz’s mental state.
Philip Bramley’s son Paul, 28, was killed along with 148 other passengers and crew members on March 24 last year.
In an exclusive interview with the Sunday Mirror, Philip said: “I want this report to tell the truth about what happened, why Lubitz was allowed in that cockpit.
“He was seen 41 times by different doctors. If they had said something my son and everyone on that flight would still be alive.
“But it’s my view the airline is at fault. They should be more diligent about who they employ and have more safeguards to stop people slipping through the net.
“I’m shocked and appalled. Why has this not be made public sooner?”
Investigation to be published this morning
The conclusion of a year-long investigation into how suicide pilot Andreas Lubitz was able to lock himself in the cockpit of a Germanwings Airbus A320 and smash it into the side of the French Alps is set to be released this morning.
The final 87-page dossier was put together by French prosecutors from La Bureau d’Enquetes et d’Analyses (BEA) and the families of the 149 victims were briefed on its findings yesterday.
An interim report last year already revealed Lubitz - who was suffering from depression - had practiced the fatal descent on the outbound flight on the day of the tragedy.
The report is set to be published at around 10am and we will bring you its findings as they are revealed.
REUTERS/Foto-Team-MuellerAndreas Lubitz deliberately crashed the plane into the French Alps
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