Anyone active in the aviation community knows that the recent
Airbus A320-200 Germanwings Flight 9525 crash as well as the stigma that
surrounds it regarding mental health and pilots has become a primary topic of
discussion. As a quick summary;
“Germanwings said the Flight 4U9525 plane, which was travelling
from Barcelona in Spain to Dusseldorf in Germany, started descending one minute
after reaching its cruising height and continued losing altitude for eight
minutes.
Germanwings executive Thomas Winkelmann said that the pilot had
"more than 10 years of experience" and some 6,000 flying hours on an
Airbus jet under his belt.
"The aircraft's contact with French radar, French air traffic
controllers ended at 10:53am (9:57GMT) at an altitude of about 6,000 feet
(approximately 1,825 metres). The plane then crashed"” (Al Jazeera and
Agencies, 2015).
Andrews Lubitz, the First Officer of the Germanwings flight, did
have a history of mental illness that was documented. According to the
prosecutors’ office in Dusseldorf, “Documents with medical contents were
confiscated that point towards an existing illness and corresponding treatment
by doctors” (ABC, 2015). Because of his mental condition, he was forced into
taking a leave from work as a pilot for quite some time.
Another similar disaster occurred on October 31, 1999. EgyptAir
Flight 990 was a regularly scheduled flight from LA to Cairo. In this incident,
there were 217 fatalities, which includes the crew of 14. During this flight,
the First Officer assumed control of the aircraft by disengaging the auto pilot
and immediately saying, “I rely on God.” The plane rapidly lost altitude with
the captain inquiring as to what was wrong and what was happening. The Egyptian
First Officer continued to say in Arabic, “I rely on God.” Some of the last
words said were the captain asking the First Officer to pull with him (NTSB,
2002).
Also some sources, especially inside Egypt, have reported this not
as a suicide, through investigating the NTSB report it is self-evident that the
main factor of this accident was in fact mental illness in the form of suicide.
The current mental health system screens for pilots with mental
health issues via self-reporting and examination of primary care physicians.
Additionally, companies sometimes include a psychiatric evaluation for new
hires and occasionally conduct reoccurring evaluations for currently employed
pilots.
This method is as sufficient as it can possibly be, while
remaining within the confines of confidentiality agreements between mental
health physicians and their patients. Reform is needed, in my opinion, but not in
the screening process. The process that I think needs reforming is
understanding that the complexity of mental illness is never in black and
white, while unfortunately the policy for it is. Case to case examples,
especially in depression, can range from extremely minor to very severe. In a
policy with zero tolerance, pilots are faced with the issue of quitting their
job or “toughing it out”.
Obviously, with my more liberal approach, there will be depressed
pilots behind the controls. The FAA, airlines, and passengers would have a very
difficult time coming to terms with this due to the stigma behind mental health
in the United States. However, a pilot who has passed a type of screening that
recognizes that he or she can reliably take an anti-depressant and function
appropriately while on one, is significantly safer than an un-medicated and
unreported pilot with depression or mental illness.
References:
ABC (2015, March 27). Germanwings plane
crash: Co-pilot hid medical condition from employers, unable to work according
to sick notes, prosecutors say. Retrieved from http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-03-27/reports-germanwings-co-pilot-suffered-serious-depressive-episode/6354642.
Al Jazeera and Agencies (2015, March 25).
No survivors from German airliner crash in French Alps. Retrieved from http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2015/03/german-passenger-jet-crashes-french-alps-150324104354907.html.
NTSB (2002, March). Archived from the
original on 27 June 2011. Retrieved from http://www.webcitation.org/5zlFg31jj.
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