Germanwings plane disaster: German police probe co-pilot

German police have seized possessions belonging to a co-pilot who apparently crashed his plane in the French Alps killing all 150 people on board, as they investigate his possible motives.

They said they had found a significant clue, according to media reports.

Data from the plane’s voice recorder suggest Mr Lubitz had deliberately started a descent while the pilot was locked out of the cockpit.

The Barcelona-Duesseldorf flight crashed on Tuesday.

Several airlines have now pledged to change their rules to ensure at least two crew members are present in the cockpit at all times.

‘Depression’

The revelations by the German police come after officers searched Mr Lubitz’s flat in Duesseldorf and the house the 27-year-old shared with his parents in Montabaur, north of Frankfurt, late on Thursday.

A number of items were removed – including boxes and a computer – from the two properties.

We have found something which will now be taken for tests. We cannot say what it is at the moment but it may be a very significant clue to what has happened,” the Daily Mail quoted police spokesman Markus Niesczery as saying.

However, police said the discovery was not a suicide note.

There were also unconfirmed reports in the German media that Mr Lubitz had suffered from depression.

Meanwhile, German government officials said Mr Lubitz was not known to the country’s security services.

What happened in the final half hour?

Earlier, Carsten Spohr, the head of Lufthansa, the German carrier that owns Germanwings, said the co-pilot had undergone intensive training and “was 100% fit to fly without any caveats”.

Mr Spohr said Mr Lubitz’s training had been interrupted for several months six years ago, but did not say why.

The training was resumed after “the suitability of the candidate was re-established”, he said.

BBC