[Peetwo]

Germanwings knock on effect??

The following is an excellent article from Jamie Freed (via the SMH) that outlines some of the dilemmas that the Germanwings BEA Final Report has unearthed:

Aviation industry needs to learn from Germanwings crash: French investigators


Date March 14, 2016

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Jamie Freed
Senior Reporter


Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/business/aviation/aviation-industry-needs-to-learn-from-germanwings-crash-french-investigators-20160313-gni0tj.html#ixzz42xlSzLIP
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The mental health of airline pilots needs to be better monitored and the financial impacts of losing a pilot's licence for medical reasons should be mitigated to help prevent a repeat of last year's tragic Germanwings crash, say French aviation investigators.


All 150 passengers and crew on Germanwings flight 9525 from Barcelona to Dusseldorf died in March last year when first officer Andreas Lubitz intentionally flew the A320 into the French Alps after locking the captain out of the flight deck.

A final report into the crash by France's Bureau d'Enquetes et d'Analyses issued on Sunday found none of the pilots or instructors who had flown with Mr Lubitz in the months before the crash, had indicated any concerns about his mental health.

Germanwings pilot Andreas Lubitz was not insured for loss of income if he was found unfit to fly. Photo: Michael Mueller

But the 27-year-old pilot had seen several private physicians since December 2014 expressing concern over vision problems and sleep disorders and had been prescribed anti-depressants.

Mr Lubitz, who had had an episode of depression in 2009 that was known to authorities at that time, also received sick leave certificates that were not forwarded to Germanwings in the weeks before the crash.

A fortnight before the crash, one doctor diagnosed Mr Lubitz with possible psychosis and recommended psychiatric hospital treatment.


In Australia, major airline pilots can be paid nearly $1 million if they are found medically unfit to fly. Photo: Jim Rice

Mental health monitoring
The final report laid out several recommendations for the airline industry to help prevent a similar tragedy from occurring in the future, including more mental health monitoring for pilots and a better balance between medical confidentiality and public safety.

BEA said the European Commission should define clear rules to require healthcare providers to inform the appropriate authorities when a specific patient's health was very likely to impact public safety, even if the patient did not give consent.

All 150 passengers and crew on a Germanwings flight died when pilot Andreas Lubitz deliberately crashed it in the French Alps. Photo: AP

"These rules should take into account the specificities of pilots, for whom the risk of losing their medical certificate, being not only a financial matter but also a matter related to their passion for flying, may deter them from seeking appropriate health care," the French report said.

In Australia, personal information can be disclosed by a medical professional if it represents a serious threat to public health or public safety.

"We would be sceptical of that because the answer is not in breaching people's confidentiality - that means they won't tell the doctor in the first place," Australian and International Pilots Association (AIPA) president Nathan Safe said.

Mr Lubitz had a €41,000 loan to finance his €60,000 share of pilot training. The loss of licence contract with Germanwings would have provided him with a one-time payment of €58,799 if he was found permanently unfit to fly in his first five years of employment.

However, he did not have any additional insurance the would cover the potential loss of future income if he was found unfit to fly.

"In an email he wrote in December 2014 he mentioned that having a waiver attached to his medical certificate [due to his previous episode of depression] was hindering his ability to get such an insurance policy," BEA said.

Australian payouts
In Australia, pilots for major airlines have loss of licence insurance that can pay almost $1 million if they are deemed medically unfit to fly. The Australian Air Pilots Mutual Benefit Fund policy and the Association for Virgin Australia Group Pilots loss of licence fund pays out on mental health issues, although there are exclusions for intentional self-injury.
Qantas in December agreed with AIPA to modernise language regarding loss of licence insurance payouts that had not been updated since the 1960s.

Under new wording that took effect in January, payouts over specific mental health issues such as depression, anxiety and obsessive compulsive disorder, will still only be made at the discretion of the carrier on a doctor's advice.

But industry sources noted the carrier had typically been generous in serious cases and Qantas clearly did not want pilots to be flying if they were medically unfit, due to the obvious risks.

"We are happy with the approach over the last year," said Mr Safe of AIPA.
Australia has been ahead of much of the world in allowing pilots to fly while taking certain anti-depressant medications since the 1990s. There are also well-developed peer assistance networks for airline pilots.

Progressive approach
"[The Civil Aviation Safety Authority] has a very progressive approach to the medical certification of pilots who have had mental health challenges and, in the vast majority of cases, pilots are returned to flying status once adequately treated," Qantas head of base operations Captain Alistair Crawford told his airline's pilots in December.

"In simple cases of depression, this can be within a matter of weeks. Only in a fraction of cases, when treatment cannot adequately control symptoms do mental illnesses result in long-term unfitness to fly."

The French report recommended the European Aviation Safety Agency define ways in which European Union regulators would allow pilots to be declared fit to fly while taking anti-depressants under medical supervision.

In the wake of the Germanwings crash, Australian regulators and those from many other countries imposed a "rule of two", designed to enhance safety by having two people present on the flight deck at all times. BEA acknowledged the potential safety benefits but did not issue any recommendation in this regard.

"This 'two person in the cockpit' rule cannot fully mitigate the risk of suicide, although it is likely to make it more difficult," the report said.
"In addition, this rule may introduce new security risks by allowing an additional person inside the flight deck."

"O ye of little faith. Ye petty fidians; He calleth them not nullifidians."

Call me pessimistic but the current CASA DAS Skidmore's 19th century Maritime attitude to CVD Pilots - see HERE - does not fill me with a lot of confidence when it comes to the ramifications of the Germanwings tragedy.

It would be a shame if CASA intervened with some knee-jerk action, because it would seem if left to their own devices airlines, like our national carrier Qantas, are being very proactive & forward thinking with their response to the implications & recommendations of Germanwings. Via news.com.au:  

Germanwings’ crash report sees Qantas bid to help gauge pilots’ mental health

Robyn Ironside News Corp Australia Network


QANTAS pilots will be fed information on mental health and wellbeing via an app on their flightcrew iPads in an effort to safeguard the airline against a Germanwings’ type disaster.

The Flying Kangaroo has been looking at ways to assist pilots who may be struggling with mental health or depression, since the March 24, 2015 tragedy.

All 150 people on the Germanwings’ A320 were killed including two Australians, when co-pilot Andreas Lubitz locked the captain out of the cockpit and flew the plane into the French Alps.

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The horrific crash led to the Federal Government introducing a “rule of two” for Australia’s carriers to ensure one person was never left alone in the cockpit.

A final report on the Germanwings’ disaster revealed Lubitz had a long history of a serious depressive illness, and concealed his most recent episodes from his employer.


Germanwings co-pilot Andreas Lubitz was found to be solely responsible for flying an A320 into the French Alps, killing all 150 people on board. Picture: AFP / Foto Team MuellerSource:Supplied

The tragedy shone a light on how pilots’ mental health is monitored, and if enough is done to assist those struggling with the demands of the job.

Australian & International Pilots Association president Nathan Safe said the incident had helped bring the issue out into the open.

“I think the awareness from the employers and the regulator is better now, and I think attitudes are modernising,” said Mr Safe.

“I don’t think we have a huge problem in this country but I’m probably not qualified to say.”


Safety first ... Qantas CEO Alan Joyce chats with pilots in Sydney. Picture: AAP / Dean LewinsSource:AAP

A Qantas spokesman said the safety and health of customers and employees was the group’s number one priority.

“We have a comprehensive safety management system that guards against risks to our operations, including multi-layered systems to protect the flight deck on our aircraft,” said the spokesman.

“Qantas has also signed a new agreement for a pilot to pilot peer support program, complementing a range of other support and counselling programs and safety reporting systems available to all Qantas employees.”

The Qantas Group will also roll out an iPad app for flightcrew midyear that will carry information about mental health and wellbeing useful to pilots.

Australia’s Civil Aviation Safety Authority already requires all commercial airline pilots to undergo and pass an annual medical check that includes a psychological assessment.
The checks become twice yearly once the pilot reaches the age of 40.

The Germanwings’ crash may also lead to the sharing of information by doctors with airlines, if a pilot’s condition is considered detrimental to their ability to operate an aircraft.

In the case of Lubitz, Germany’s strict privacy laws prevented his doctors from alerting his employer to his relapse into depression.

MTF...P2