IT was the plane crash that shocked the world – Germanwings co-pilot Andreas Lubitz flew an Airbus A320 into the French Alps, killing all 150 souls on board in a gruesome suicide-murder plot.
It’s nearly ten years to the day since the mass tragedy, but Andreas’ grieving family have cast doubt on whether their son was really responsible for the deaths of the 149 passengers on board that day.
ReutersHorror pictures show the wreckage of the Airbus A320 is seen at the site of the crash[/caption]
Co-pilot Andreas Lubitz crashed the plane in a murder-suicide plot, air crash investigator concludedReuters
EPAGunther Lubitz, Andreas’ father, seen at a press conference in 2017[/caption]
The Lubitz family hired aviation expert Tim van Beveren to scour reports for any crucial detail that may prove their son’s guilt or innocence.
Here, Tim exclusively reveals never-before-heard details about the case and recent conversations he shared with the Lubitz family.
‘Open the damn door!’
At 10.40 am on 24th March 2015, air traffic control were alerted that the plane, following a routine flight path from Barcelona to Dusseldorf, had begun descending at a rapid pace and lost radio contact.
It nose-dived near the remote village of Prads-Haute-Bléone at 400mph, killing everyone on board, including the young co-pilot, 27-year-old Andreas Lubitz.
Rescuers faced remote and treacherous terrain but when they reached the scene of devastation it was clear that no one could have survived such a violent impact.
We had to live with the fact that he was portrayed as a mass murderer in the media. We are searching for the truth.
Gunther Lubitz
The biggest piece of debris from the horror crash was no bigger than the size of a small car.
The plane’s mangled black box, a data recorder that provides vital clues to air crash investigators about the jet’s final moments, was found amongst the wreckage.
On it, they would find chilling cock-pit audio including pleas from the captain to “open the damn door” and horrific screams from passengers.
Death plunge
In the days, weeks and months that followed, France’s Bureau of Enquiry and Analysis for Civil Aviation Safety(BEA) delved into the cause of the crash.
They concluded that the flight had been deliberately crashed into the side of the Tete du Travers peak by the plane’s co-pilot in a murder-suicide plot.
The chilling 2016 report suggested that Lubitz was able to override the cockpit door’s keypad system when the captain left, taking control of the aircraft and sending the jet into a death plunge.
It also stated that the young co-pilot had a history of mental health problems and had not made his employers aware of a doctor’s note that meant he was unfit to work.
It concluded that: “The collision with the ground was due to the deliberate and planned action of the co-pilot, who decided to commit suicide while alone in the cockpit.”
Were toxic fumes to blame?
The family has remained silent since a press conference in 2017, where Tim presented his findings alongside Andreas’ father Gunther, then 64.
At the time Gunther said: “In the six years before the crash, we saw our son as a life-affirming and cheerful person. At the time of the crash, our son was not suicidal.
“We had to live with the fact that he was portrayed as a mass murderer in the media. We are searching for the truth.”
He explained that in 2009, six years before the crash, his son had suffered from depression but that he’d overcome illness and was “full of life.”
EPAAndreas Lubitz had previously suffered with despression, his family said[/caption]
EPASearch and rescue workers make their way through debris at the crash site of the Germanwings Airbus A320[/caption]
AFPAndreas’ father Gunther said he did not believe his son could have committed mass murder[/caption]
AFPThe reports says the Lubitz was able to override the cockpit door similar to one pictured[/caption]
Speaking exclusively to The Sun, Tim says: “It was certainly too much of a psychological burden for the family to work through the complete investigation files.
“With 39 volumes, 16,086 individual pages and around 2,000 pages of press articles in various languages and, in particular, trying to understand the technical background.
“I remember meeting with the family in Berlin on 16 July 2016 very well.
“My main concern was that I was able to carry out my task with an open mind and that we were in agreement about this.
“So I asked the co-pilot’s father, ‘What if I find out during my research that the co-pilot deliberately flew the plane into the mountain?
“Gunther Lubitz replied that it would certainly be hard for the family but they would be able to deal and live with this realisation and I would then also have to provide the relevant and reliable evidence.
“So that was the basis of my assignment and it was precisely this reliable evidence and proof of a crash actively and deliberately brought about by the co-pilot that I was unable to establish in the investigation files available to me.”
On the day the tragedy unfolded, Tim says the family were whisked away from their home and remained under police observation for days without access to TV, radio or newspapers.
But as the story behind the crash unravelled, Tim began scouring through the report in search of answers eventually releasing his own findings on the case.
I asked the co-pilot’s father, ‘What if I find out during my research that the co-pilot deliberately flew the plane into the mountain?
Tim van Beveren
Tim claims that the crash probe was flawed from the start when investigators solely focused on Andreas’ mental health and failed to follow other leads.
He believes that the co-pilot’s health was “misinterpreted”, that his actual doctor’s note had ended two days before the crash and that there was no input by medical professionals in the report.
But one of his most shocking claims is that Andreas could have been exposed to toxic fumes after flying several planes with a history of air cabin contamination.
Some of the symptoms of an aircraft fume event include depression, mood changes and in extreme cases unconsciousness as well as blurred vision – something that the co-pilot had reportedly struggled with.
He told The Sun: “For the family and close friends I did talk to, this attribution of blame does not fit with the co-pilot’s personality.
“I would like to emphasise that nobody here is categorically ruling out the suggested sequence of events of the accident, but there are considerable and in my opinion legitimate doubts.”
His report also raises technical concerns about the plane, suggesting that an onboard fault in the Flight control Unit could have caused the rapid nose-dive.
He says that there were two conflicting auto-pilot settings active as the plane descended – something that is deemed technically impossible.
An upcoming Sky documentary with various experts is also set to raises questions about technical issues that could have sparked the crash.
AFPThe plane was completely obliterated after the crash with the biggest piece of debris being no bigger than a small car[/caption]
AlamyAviation expert Tim van Beveren spoke exclusively to The Sun about the case[/caption]
SONDE-STIFTUNGSFONDS.DE34-year-old pilot Captain Patrick Sondenheimer left the cockpit for a break and was locked out by Lubitz[/caption]
Brit Martyn Matthews, 50, from Wolverhampton was killed in the horror plane crashPA:Press Association
Tim adds: “The family told me that they had concluded that in all the ongoing proceedings at the time, there was no longer any open investigation in all directions, as was required.
“…From this point onwards, the investigation was actually only one-sided against the co-pilot and everything else was simply disregarded.”
Asked if the family believed their son had carried out the murder-suicide pilot, Tim explains: “From my conversations, I know that the family does not deny this possibility across the board.
“Their problem is still that the accusations are not substantiated, but are based on assumptions.”
Having been so deeply involved in the shocking case, Tim says that the relatives of all those onboard deserve a fresh investigation and have the “right to know the truth”.
He adds: “This is not only a moral obligation but also has to do with the respect we all owe for the deceased.”
At the time of the 2017 press conference, Dusseldorf prosecutor Christoph Kumpa said he saw no reason for the prosecution to reopen its investigation.
He said: “The crash happened due to the deliberate actions of the co-pilot, likely with suicidal intent. There is not sufficient actual evidence of any other cause of the crash, and none is foreseeable.”
Prosecutor Christoph Kumpa said in an interview in February this year that Tim’s report had never been handed over to his office, despite the family’s claims in 2017 that it would be made available to authorities.
However the report has been available online since then and Tim’s say it was handed over The International Civil Aviation Organization and the German Ministry of Transport.
In the interview, he said: “There is absolutely no doubt that the co-pilot is responsible for the crash. There is no sufficient factual evidence that there was any other cause of the crash.”
As the tenth anniversary approaches, it remains to be seen whether the case will ever be reopened despite concerns in the family’s report.
AFPAn aerial photo taken from a helicopter shows a close-up view of scattered debris at the crash site[/caption]
EPAGermanwings CEO Thomas Winkelmann (R) and Lufthansa CEO Carsten Spohr (L) visited the air crash memorial[/caption]
AFPA memorial was setup near the crash scene as a tribute to the victims[/caption]
AFPThe Germanwings airline is no longer operational[/caption] Published: [#item_custom_pubDate]
