Pilots and Depression

1.) Essentially what had happened with the GermanWing crash on March 24, 2015 was a result of suicidal thoughts and depression obtained by the co-pilot. On previous flights, the Telegraph News stated that the co-pilot, Andreas Lubitz, had been practicing “controlled descents that lasted for minutes and for which there was no aeronautical justification”. Basically, Lubitz was trying to nonchalantly descend the plane into the ground without the cabin even noticing. On flight 4U9525 from Barcelona to Duesseldorf on March 24, Co-pilot Lubitz locked the Captain out of the cockpit, and descended the plane into terrain killing all 150 members aboard the A320.  There was documentation of his depression and suicidal thoughts prior to becoming a pilot. On 09 April 2009, his first class medical was not revalidated due him taking medications for depression. Again, on 14 July 2009, his first class medical was denied but later approved on July 28 with a restriction to SIC time only and specific regular medical examinations. According to the BEA preliminary report, it was stated that during Lubitz’s training and recurrent checks, “ his professional level was judged to be above standard by his instructors and examiners”.  Somehow he was able to obtain his first class medical again, along with making his superiors think he was healthy in the head. Allowing this man to fly, especially with passengers, was a very poor decision by the Lufthansa Aeromedical Centre.   

2.) There are  various accounts of incidents and accidents where pilots have been taking antidepressants, which contributed to their unstable thought process while flying. There is one case that I found interesting, and that involves a single private

pilot named Douglas Lee Scholl.  Scholl was a 45 year old man who flew a Piper PA-28, and he had a history of depression along with an attempted suicide from the use of sleeping pills.  After attempting suicide on the night of 18 July 2003, he was released the morning of 20 July and went straight home.  “Despite having psychiatric hospitalizations beginning in 1991 and being on Prozac since 1993, he reported on his various FAA medical certificate applications that he was not taking any medications and had never had any type of mental disorder” (O’Rourke, 2003). It is sad to see that the FAA did not catch this, because Scholl flew his Piper Cherokee into the ground at Jackson Municipal Airport the morning of July 21, 2003.

3.) Currently the process for screening mental health amongst the pilots is through their first class medical examination. First class medicals have different durations depending on the age of the pilot. For those pilots under the age of 40, their first class medical lasts 12 calendar months. Pilots over the age of 40 have to renew their first class medical every 6 calendar months. I personally do not believe that this process is not sufficient enough, because the possibilities of an examinee leaving out information about their medical history are very high in order to keep their job. Typically, you have to state if you have had any medical problems when you get a first class medical done and what would possess a person to put something down that they know will cease their first class medical?  If they want to crack down on mental illness and depression in pilots, then they should implement a process where they have to pass a session with a psychologist.  A quick session with a psychologist could help with weeding out pilots who have suicidal thoughts or chronic depression.

4.) To reiterate on what was said previously, most pilots who work for the airlines will not want to confess to the FAA or the company they work for that they have a medical problem. If an airline pilot tells his employer that he has a medical issue, there is a chance he/she could lose his first class medical along with his job.  The FAA is so strict with this topic that most pilots are afraid to fess up about their medical issues. Think about it, their job could be terminated by something that could be treated over time. If a more liberal approach was implemented, I could see more pilots coming forth with their problems; as well as seeking medical treatment instead of hiding it from the companies and making their mental illness worse.

References:

BEA. (2015, May). Accident on 24 March 2015 at Prads-Haute-Bléone (Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, France) to the Airbus A320-211 registered D-AIPX operated by Germanwings. Retrieved January 25, 2016, from http://www.bea.aero/docspa/2015/d-px150324.en/pdf/d-px150324.en.pdf

O’Rourke, C. (n.d.). Suicide by Airplane. Retrieved January 25, 2016, from http://ssristories.org/suicide-by-airplane-charles-orourke/

Sawer, P. (2015, May 06). The Telegraph. Andreas Lubitz: Everything We Know about Germanwings Plane Crash Co-pilot. Retrieved January 25, 2016, from http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/france/11496066/Andreas-Lubitz-Everything-we-know-about-Germanwings-plane-crash-co-pilot.html