The BBC report http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-32062278 that:
'One of the two pilots of the Germanwings plane that crashed in the French Alps was locked out of the cockpit, according to reports.
Early findings from the cockpit voice recorder suggest the pilot made desperate efforts to get back in, sources close to the investigation say.'
I wonder where this story is going. Do we know the names of the two pilots and the cabin crew yet?
No, but locked cockpit door policies were introduced post 9/11, with access via keypad locks (there is another way, known to the crew...). However, during most flights, a brief excursion by one of the cockpit crew invariably ended with him/her knocking on the door from the outside, to be let in, which was more convenient than fumbling around with a code. Perhaps the code was either not known, or forgotten.
ReplyDeleteIn any event, it DOES seem strange that in almost ten minutes of a fairly pronounced descent, no-one thought to take the situation seriously, and attempted to force the cockpit door earlier on.
The spectacle must have been terrifying for the punters.
Deliberate? Who knows. With no pertinent voices recorded, the mystery deepens.