"Lubitz's particular history of depression and mental instability made him a suicide time bomb, triggered to go off under the ordinary stresses of life, particularly the kind of stresses a commercial pilot routinely faces," said attorney Marc S. Moller of the New York law firm Kreindler & Kreindler, which represents the families. It's well known that cases of depression frequently recur, although when they will recur is unpredictable, he said.
Would the FAA Aerospace Medical Certification Division agree to such radical point of view? Take a look at Lubitz's medical history, section 1.13.1 in the BEA report.
Originally Posted by BEA
08/07/2010: Letter from the FAA to the co-pilot informing him that he was not eligible to hold an airman medical certificate at this time, due to his history of reactive depression. The FAA asked him to submit a report from his prescribing physician that should include diagnosis, prognosis without medication(s), follow-up plan and copies of treatment records.
And then, after submission of the requested paperwork:
Originally Posted by BEA
28/07/2010: Issuance of a FAA third-class medical certificate without any limitation. The letter from the FAA accompanying the certificate indicates that because of the history of reactive depression, "operation of aircraft is prohibited at any time new symptoms or adverse changes occur or any time medication and/or treatment is required".
Like Lufthansa Aero-Medical Centre, the FAA obviously were aware that depression can recur, but did not expect it to do so without timely signs of warning.
In hindsight they were wrong. Well, not about the signs of warning (section 1.13.1 in the BEA report has no less than eleven entries for the final four months), but about the expectation that these signs would stop Lubitz from flying.