|
Lubitz, a co-pilot at Lufthansa's budget division
Germanwings, is believed to have deliberately crashed a plane
into the French Alps and killed 150 people.
The question of what Lufthansa knew about any psychiatric
problems may be a factor in its liability in the crash.
Germany's Allianz estimates that insurers will end up paying
$300 million in claims and costs related to the crash.
Lubitz broke off pilot training for several months in 2009. When
he resumed his training, he told the Lufthansa pilot instructors
by email he had overcome a period of severe depression. He was
first certified to fly commercial planes in 2012.
Under European regulations, pilots with psychiatric conditions
should be referred to the licensing authority by aeromedical
examiners, who may then decide to restrict the pilot’s licence.
The Luftfahrtbundesamt (LBA), the relevant German authority, on
Sunday said it had "no information at all" before the crash
about Lubitz's depression.
Lufthansa said that a provision in the new regulation,
introduced in Germany in April 2013, safeguarded certain
pre-existing fit-to-fly certificates and medical certificates
issued by specialized aviation doctors.
Aeromedical centers or aviation doctors could therefore issue
extensions to such medical certificates even after the new rules
came into effect, the airline said.
"A general and separate duty to refer to the LBA did not
therefore arise as a result of the change in the legal
position," Lufthansa said.
(Reporting by Kirsti Knolle; Editing by Larry King)
[© 2015 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2015 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
 |
|
