Airbus A320 crashed in Southern France
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The key pad access procedure is there in case of incapacitation, not normal access. Well at least at my company.
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Actually its along the right lines. I work in the access control business and we had this discussion over lunch today.
Bio-metric ID could be used in conjunction with a PIN to access the door. So like Pace said you have they key (your iris or fingerprint), and then a PIN. This PIN/Key arrangement is quite common in high security buildings. You would have to remove the ability to prevent valid "keyholders" from being denied access from inside the cockpit, which is currently the case.
In a duress situation the PIN would be changed slightly by the keyholder to trigger a "duress alarm" whereby access is still given. The "duress alarm" could then be used to trigger a distress signal, possibly a squark 7500, to allow a controller to see that someone has gained access to that cockpit under duress.
Certainly the knee-jerk reaction we are currently seeing could present more problems than it solves.
BVB
Bio-metric ID could be used in conjunction with a PIN to access the door. So like Pace said you have they key (your iris or fingerprint), and then a PIN. This PIN/Key arrangement is quite common in high security buildings. You would have to remove the ability to prevent valid "keyholders" from being denied access from inside the cockpit, which is currently the case.
In a duress situation the PIN would be changed slightly by the keyholder to trigger a "duress alarm" whereby access is still given. The "duress alarm" could then be used to trigger a distress signal, possibly a squark 7500, to allow a controller to see that someone has gained access to that cockpit under duress.
Certainly the knee-jerk reaction we are currently seeing could present more problems than it solves.
BVB
A person might be threatened to allow access to FD.
The GermanWings crash is a very strange scenario, although these events have happened before. Is there a sure fire solution, well at present I don't see one. Whatever scheme one could think of to prevent this from ever happening again can be defeated.
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[quote]Bio-metric ID could be used in conjunction with a PIN to access the door.[\quote]
Not without defeating the entire rationale for the door being there, which is to give the flight deck crew the ultimate authority on who is allowed to enter.
The moment you allow any sort of bypass or override from the outside, you allow for the possibility of a hostage under threat of death being forced to open the door.
Not without defeating the entire rationale for the door being there, which is to give the flight deck crew the ultimate authority on who is allowed to enter.
The moment you allow any sort of bypass or override from the outside, you allow for the possibility of a hostage under threat of death being forced to open the door.
As others have mentioned the FDR seems to have vanished ?! I for one don't think it will change much in the "big picture" here but still surprising that it has not been recovered.
I wouldn't be surprised if there is bullying at almost every airline (almost every workplace). When does it qualify as a "culture"?
I tend to call it banter and we have lots of it where I work. Banter turns into bullying if one or two ring leading individuals take it upon themselves to constantly 'banter' someone.
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Hi Pace... re:
Before seeking a solution, we need to clearly define the problem?
With this crash what is the "problem" we are trying to solve? The ill FO on the Flight Deck, or the Captain being locked out of the Flight Deck as per design requirements?
A master key hung around the neck of the exiting crew member which would override any blocking attempt by the remaining crew member in the cockpit would work with a proviso...
Still waiting for a response from a A320 Captain regarding whether this could work ?
Still waiting for a response from a A320 Captain regarding whether this could work ?
With this crash what is the "problem" we are trying to solve? The ill FO on the Flight Deck, or the Captain being locked out of the Flight Deck as per design requirements?
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illness
In the US, doctors cannot share personal health information (PHI) without consent.
However, in some circumstances, a patient can be involuntarily committed for treatment. It's an extreme step, usually warranted only when the patient is a danger to himself or others. Obviously, this would have a negative impact on the person's career.
There should be a middle ground. How would people feel if doctors were allowed to convey to the airline a pilot's fitness for duty without specifying the exact reason?
However, in some circumstances, a patient can be involuntarily committed for treatment. It's an extreme step, usually warranted only when the patient is a danger to himself or others. Obviously, this would have a negative impact on the person's career.
There should be a middle ground. How would people feel if doctors were allowed to convey to the airline a pilot's fitness for duty without specifying the exact reason?
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I'm not sure abhorent thought process brought on by thinking more of yourself than others is 'illness'
It may lead to more extreme thought/action but the root cause is lack of self-control or being able to impose self-restraint or limits
This is developed over years from a young age through guidance and imposed discipline
Learning to accept you most likely will not get all you want
Cancer is an illness but does not lead to mass homicide
Mental 'illness' needs catagorized differently since it can have severe consequences for the individual and society
What is difference between what this guy did and a suicide bomber?
Documentation, he could afford to be treated
The poor terrorist could not
But both results are the same
Both are obviously 'crazy' and have a disturbed/distorted thought process
ANYONE who kills dozens for ANY reason is not mentally healthy
Both are 'evil'
Why are people afraid to say this?
It may lead to more extreme thought/action but the root cause is lack of self-control or being able to impose self-restraint or limits
This is developed over years from a young age through guidance and imposed discipline
Learning to accept you most likely will not get all you want
Cancer is an illness but does not lead to mass homicide
Mental 'illness' needs catagorized differently since it can have severe consequences for the individual and society
What is difference between what this guy did and a suicide bomber?
Documentation, he could afford to be treated
The poor terrorist could not
But both results are the same
Both are obviously 'crazy' and have a disturbed/distorted thought process
ANYONE who kills dozens for ANY reason is not mentally healthy
Both are 'evil'
Why are people afraid to say this?
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The key pad access procedure is there in case of incapacitation, not normal access. Well at least at my company.
As others have mentioned the FDR seems to have vanished ?!
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There there poor little darlings........overworked, underpaid, paying to fly too......................booo hooo!
As we have all been told so many times in CRM, the holes in the cheese all have to line up for an accident to take place. In other words, there was more than one hole in the cheese here.
So what are the other holes are there, in this cheese?
... Did the selection process play a part? Was this self-selection, or was Lubitz the best of the bunch?
... What about these do-gooders, who say we should not stigmatise mental health (like that letter by psychacrists). Did they pressurise Lufthansa to keep Lubitz?
... Doctors who cannot even advise authorities, if they think they have a mass murderer on their hands. If a patient confesses to the doc that he is about to kill someone, is the doc really duty-bound to keep quiet? If so, something is very wrong.
... Authorities who knee-jerked into locked doors - and in their ignorance genuinely thought we would never have to leave the flightdeck during a 4-hour flight. (a locked door that is opened ten times in a flight, is not a locked door)
... Authorities who allowed companies to hit every flight duty limitation in the book - simultaneously - and did nothing about it.
... Authorities who ordered pilots to stand outside and guard the aircraft, until every passenger had boarded and the doors were closed (do you remember that nonsense...!!)
... Authorities who allowed companies to stop serving crew food, and then allowed security to confiscate any food the crew brought themselves (do you remember that nonsense). (probably does not pertain to Germanwings)
How many other holes in this particular cheese, can readers think of? And why did nobody discuss and close those holes, before this incident? What are we paying the aviation authorities to do, bar drink coffee and have a chat about the latest soap opera?
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Mental Health
There are an awful lot of armchair pilots chucking in theories and a fair amount of nonsense here.
So as a professional pilot, let me tell you my experience of a mental health issue.
I had been flying around 12 years and suffered reactionary depression from a serious life event. I sought help from my GP and was signed off work and prescribed anti-depressants and sleeping tablets. In accordance with the established regulations I reported the matter to my employer and the UK CAA and received a temporary unfit letter. It took time to recover and I used every tool available, counselling, medication and so on. I was off medication and about to return to work for what I hoped would be a managed return when I was disciplined by my airline for absence. I was given a final warning despite my, and Balpa's best efforts. I struggled with the concept of returning to work in what would be a difficult set of circumstances and eventually relapsed into depression again. I had hoped I would have been treated with respect and dignity, I was not.
I was never given a golden ticket into a shiny cockpit. I worked my way their, the old way, PPL, CPL, FI, FO and so on and became a captain at my company and happily flew for them for 9 years without any incident or problem, I can't even remember being off with a cold.
I did recover, regained my class 1 medical and hunted for work. It's been 2 years now. I have never flown anything since. I have drifted from job to job and dream of flying almost every day but now accept it is unlikely ever to happen again. I miss it dreadfully and wish almost every day I had not told anyone, but I did and now I'm paying for it big time.
The whole industry needs a serious shake up in terms of viewing of mental health. Performance management by sending pilots to simulators and bashing the hell out of someone who has suffered from depression is not the way forward. If airlines keep treating crew like something on the bottom of their shoe things will never improve.
None of this of course condones what has happened, if indeed the final investigation proves this to be the case and at no point did I ever fancy killing anyone, although my feeling towards the HR manager weren't very nice at the time.....
Anyway, just my experience, from a former ATPL holder.....
So as a professional pilot, let me tell you my experience of a mental health issue.
I had been flying around 12 years and suffered reactionary depression from a serious life event. I sought help from my GP and was signed off work and prescribed anti-depressants and sleeping tablets. In accordance with the established regulations I reported the matter to my employer and the UK CAA and received a temporary unfit letter. It took time to recover and I used every tool available, counselling, medication and so on. I was off medication and about to return to work for what I hoped would be a managed return when I was disciplined by my airline for absence. I was given a final warning despite my, and Balpa's best efforts. I struggled with the concept of returning to work in what would be a difficult set of circumstances and eventually relapsed into depression again. I had hoped I would have been treated with respect and dignity, I was not.
I was never given a golden ticket into a shiny cockpit. I worked my way their, the old way, PPL, CPL, FI, FO and so on and became a captain at my company and happily flew for them for 9 years without any incident or problem, I can't even remember being off with a cold.
I did recover, regained my class 1 medical and hunted for work. It's been 2 years now. I have never flown anything since. I have drifted from job to job and dream of flying almost every day but now accept it is unlikely ever to happen again. I miss it dreadfully and wish almost every day I had not told anyone, but I did and now I'm paying for it big time.
The whole industry needs a serious shake up in terms of viewing of mental health. Performance management by sending pilots to simulators and bashing the hell out of someone who has suffered from depression is not the way forward. If airlines keep treating crew like something on the bottom of their shoe things will never improve.
None of this of course condones what has happened, if indeed the final investigation proves this to be the case and at no point did I ever fancy killing anyone, although my feeling towards the HR manager weren't very nice at the time.....
Anyway, just my experience, from a former ATPL holder.....
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It is only a matter of time until the FDR is recovered.
Question: Does the FDR record the state of the cockpit door switch?
IMHO, making 2 people to be present in cockpit rule will not really prevent situations like this as others have noted.
Can we have a system which recognizes that every thing is ok with the plane and still it is too close to terrain and automatically pulls up and maintains safe level flight?
Question: Does the FDR record the state of the cockpit door switch?
IMHO, making 2 people to be present in cockpit rule will not really prevent situations like this as others have noted.
Can we have a system which recognizes that every thing is ok with the plane and still it is too close to terrain and automatically pulls up and maintains safe level flight?
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Screening pilots is not that hard, however airlines HR and/or management current procedures may overlook something that the military do for some time prior to put a multi-million very lethal F-16/F-18/Mirage/Eurofighter/etc in the hands of someone.
There are not many stories of screwed up military pilots that crashed their warbird in the worst possible way. And at first glance most of those topgun military pilots seem a bit beyond of what you might consider ‘normal’.
There are not many stories of screwed up military pilots that crashed their warbird in the worst possible way. And at first glance most of those topgun military pilots seem a bit beyond of what you might consider ‘normal’.
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After reading news accounts of the young man's past, it's possible that he never really wanted to be a pilot at all.
He had a high-achieving, financially successful German father with whom he still lived part-time and who was probably paying for the young man's apartment. The piano-teacher mother is barely mentioned - while the son was running half-marathons with his father.
Perhaps the son was always trying to meet his father's high standards. Maybe that's why he "burned out" during pilot training - he may have hated flying. He didn't really want to be a pilot, but knew that "Tomato Andy" the flight attendant, couldn't possibly meet his father's lofty expectations.
He was reportedly having relationship problems - going on holiday in Miami with a male acquaintance; then living with a girlfriend in the apartment.
Inside, this young man might have been a totally different person who hated the life he felt he had to live outwardly. Perhaps his final desperate act was to kill his public persona......
He had a high-achieving, financially successful German father with whom he still lived part-time and who was probably paying for the young man's apartment. The piano-teacher mother is barely mentioned - while the son was running half-marathons with his father.
Perhaps the son was always trying to meet his father's high standards. Maybe that's why he "burned out" during pilot training - he may have hated flying. He didn't really want to be a pilot, but knew that "Tomato Andy" the flight attendant, couldn't possibly meet his father's lofty expectations.
He was reportedly having relationship problems - going on holiday in Miami with a male acquaintance; then living with a girlfriend in the apartment.
Inside, this young man might have been a totally different person who hated the life he felt he had to live outwardly. Perhaps his final desperate act was to kill his public persona......
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@Ranger1
It always seems that an affliction served on a third-party is generally considered from the point of view of what was meant, rather than what was felt. All the way from minds scrambling as to why the plane was descending so soon after take-off, to the final unfortunate moment of unbelievable realisation is where the true terror lies!
...definition of 'terrorism' is in the method, not the motive..
In all Organisations there must be basic discipline. And whilst I fully appreciate that aviation is different, an aircraft is an Organisation and it needs a CEO. That being the Captain. It seems to me that having a member of the Cabin Crew serve as a spy on the Flight deck when one of the "Senior Executives" leave temporarily doesn't do much for the discipline or, perhaps more importantly, morale in this Organisation?
In my line of work (engineering) everything I do is subject to peer/group review at a minimum. And there will be subsequent certification analysis and/or testing done to validate the adequacy of my work. People who think they are too good or too smart to be second guessed aren't suited for the job.
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Can we have a system which recognizes that every thing is ok with the plane and still it is too close to terrain and automatically pulls up and maintains safe level flight?
present the A/C does not provide any form of protection when it comes to terrain, it merely provide warnings".
This seems outrageous. When the dust has settled, something needs to be done about it.
This seems outrageous. When the dust has settled, something needs to be done about it.
Yes - when we have a pilotless aircraft, then things like EGPWS will have built in reactions. Until then they provide warnings, and the pilots take appropriate actions.
Please note, our Operations Manual permits us to ignore (E)GPWS warnings under certain circumstances. The technology maturity is not yet at a point where it can be relied on...
I'm not sure abhorent thought process brought on by thinking more of yourself than others is 'illness'
......but the root cause is lack of self-control or being able to impose self-restraint or limits
......but the root cause is lack of self-control or being able to impose self-restraint or limits