Germanwings Flight 4U 9524 News Updates -- March 27, 2015

Reuters: Torn-up sick notes show crash pilot should have been grounded

(Reuters) - German authorities found torn-up sick notes showing that the pilot who crashed a plane into the French Alps was suffering from an illness that should have grounded him on the day of the tragedy, which he apparently hid from the airline.

French prosecutors believe Andreas Lubitz, 27, locked himself alone in the cockpit of the Germanwings Airbus A320 on Tuesday and deliberately steered it into a mountain, killing all 150 people on board.

Germanwings Flight 4U 9524 News Updates -- March 27, 2015

Germanwings crash: Investigation latest -- BBC
Germanwings investigators find torn-up sick note in co-pilot's home - live -- The Guardian
Germanwings crash live updates: 'We haven't found a single body intact' -- L.A. Times
The Latest: Europe aviation agency urges 2 crew in cockpits -- Washington Post/AP

Germanwings captain Patrick Sondenheimer tried to break into locked cockpit door 'with an axe' as plane was descending -- The Independent
Germanwings co-pilot's torn sick note, romantic breakup provide clues in crash probe -- FOX News
Police Claim to Find 'Significant Clue' at Home of Alps Plane Crash Suspect -- Sputnik
Mass-killer co-pilot who deliberately crashed Germanwings plane had to STOP training because he was suffering depression and 'burn-out' -- Daily Mail
Co-pilot may have hidden illness, German prosecutors say -- AP
Germanwings crash: Co-pilot Lubitz 'hid illness' -- BBC
Prosecutors: Germanwings Co-Pilot Hid Illness -- VOA
How Germanwings co-pilot hid secret mental illness: Families' fury at airline as police find pile of torn-up sick notes in home of killer nicknamed 'Tomato Andy' - including one for day he crashed jet -- Daily Mail
Germanwings co-pilot Andreas Lubitz 'hid illness from employers' -- The Guardian
Germanwings co-pilot 'hid illness,' medical leave note from employers - prosecutors -- RT
Germanwings co-pilot had medical note for day of crash, hid illness, officials say -- CNN
The last minutes of Germanwings flight 4U9525 -- The Guardian
Desperate plane captain tried to break down cockpit door with an AXE - but passengers were oblivious to what was happening until 'screams' at last moment -- Daily Mail
Germanwings crash: Who was co-pilot Andreas Lubitz? -- BBC
No sure way to prevent pilot 'suicides': psychologists -- Reuters

Germanwings Flight 4U 9525 News Updates -- March 26, 2015

Daily Mail: BREAKING NEWS: Germanwings co-pilot Andreas Lubitz DELIBERATELY crashed Flight 4U9525 into mountain to 'destroy the plane' after locking his captain out of cockpit, reveals French prosecutor

* Black box voice recorder reveals final chilling moments of Airbus A320
* Prosecutor: 'Death was instant. You only hear screams in final seconds'
* Co-pilot was named today as 28-year-old German Andreas Günter Lubitz
* Prosecutor says he does not believe disaster was terrorism or suicide

The co-pilot of the doomed Germanwings Airbus A320 locked his captain out of the cockpit before deliberately crashing into a mountain to 'destroy the plane', it was sensationally revealed today.

French prosecutor Brice Robin gave further chilling details of the final ten minutes in the cockpit before the Airbus A320 plunged into the French Alps killing 150 people.

Revealing data extracted from the black box voice recorder, he said the co-pilot - named as 28-year-old German Andreas Lubitz - locked his captain out after the senior officer left the cockpit.

At that point, Lubitz uses the flight managing system to put the plane into a descent, something that can only be done manually - and deliberately.

He said: 'The intention was to destroy the plane. Death was instant. The plane hit the mountain at 700km per hour.

'I don't think that the passengers realised what was happening until the last moments because on the recording you only hear the screams in the final seconds'.

Germanwings Flight 4U 9525 News Updates -- March 26, 2015

Germanwings crash latest updates -- BBC
Germanwings Flight 4U 9525 News Updates -- The Telegraph
Germanwings co-pilot intended to destroy plane, says French prosecutor – live updates -- The Guardian
Germanwings plane crash live: Andreas Lubitz 'intentionally crashed' Flight 9525 into Alps -- The Independent
Updates on the Germanwings Plane Crash Investigation -- NYT
Airbus A320 plane crash in Southern France LIVE UPDATES -- RT
Live: Germanwings co-pilot intentionally destroyed plane, say French prosecutors -- First Post

Germanwings plane crash: Co-pilot 'wanted to destroy plane' -- BBC
French prosecutor: Co-pilot wanted to 'destroy' the plane -- AP
Germanwings co-pilot 'wanted to destroy plane', prosecutor says -- France 24
Co-pilot made 'deliberate attempt' to crash Germanwings plane, prosecutor says -- CNN
Germanwings flight 4U9525 deliberately flown into mountain, says prosecutor -- The Guardian
'We only hear screams in the last seconds. Death was instant' -- The Telegraph
Germanwings co-pilot wanted to 'destroy the plane,' locked pilot out of cockpit, says prosecutor -- FOX News
Germanwings crash: pilot locked out of plane's cockpit, say reports -- The Guardian
Germanwings Pilot Was Locked Out of Cockpit Before Crash in France -- NYT
Co-pilot appears to have crashed Germanwings plane deliberately: French prosecutor -- Reuters
'You can hear he is trying to smash the door down' -- The Telegraph
Germanwings co-pilot appears to have crashed plane deliberately – prosecutor -- RT
Germanwings Co-Pilot Likely Voluntarily Crashed A320 Plane - Prosecutor -- Sputnik
French prosecutor says pilot deliberately crashed plane -- Al Jazeera
Germanwings crash: pilot locked out of plane's cockpit, say reports -- The Guardian
Report: Black Box Indicates One Germanwings Pilot Had Left Cockpit -- VOA
Germanwings co-pilot had no terrorism background: German minister -- Reuters

What we know about Andreas Lubitz, the co-pilot of Germanwings Flight 9525 -- Washington Post
Germanwings Crash: What We Know About the Co-Pilot -- ABC News
Germanwings Pilot Who Crashed Jet Started Flying as Youth -- Bloomberg
Who was Andreas Lubitz? Germanwings co-pilot who murdered 150 passengers in deliberate Alps crash -- IBTimes
Andreas Lubitz Germanwings co-pilot: First picture as it's revealed he deliberately flew jet into Alps -- Mirror
Andreas Lubitz, Germanwings Flight 4U9525 co-pilot, showed no signs of plan -- CBC

Germanwings Crash Throws Spotlight on Cockpit Security -- WSJ
Germanwings crash: safety of cockpit doors on all planes questioned -- The Guardian

Germanwings Flight 4U 9525 News Updates -- March 25, 2015

Daily Mail: Did Germanwings plane's windscreen CRACK? Pilots of flight 4U 9525 may have been incapacitated after oxygen level plunged - as first pictures of damaged black box flight recorder emerge

* Airbus A320 was carrying 144 passengers - including two babies and 16 German children - plus six crew members
* At least three British nationals and two Americans are believed to have been on board the flight, say officials
* Reports on professional pilot forum suggest black box voice recorder reveals 'structural failure' caused disaster
* Top official says crucial minute between 10.30am and 10.31am when contact was lost was vital to the investigation
* Reports suggest the aircraft had been grounded just 24 hours before it crashed into remote region of French Alps
* One Germanwings flight from Dusseldorf to Barcelona cancelled because pilots 'don't feel they're in a position to fly'
* Several Germanwings crews - including pilots - refused to work at British airports following the accident yesterday
* Helicopter search operations resumed at first light this morning in near-freezing conditions across remote terrain

The doomed Germanwings plane may have crashed because the windscreen cracked, causing a sudden drop in oxygen levels that rendered the pilots unconscious, it was claimed today.

Reports circulating on professional pilot forums suggested the black box on the Airbus A320 had been analysed and revealed that a 'structural failure' was responsible for the disaster.

Flight 4U 9525 dropped out of the sky and ploughed into a mountainside in the French Alps at more than 400mph yesterday, killing all 150 people board.

In the latest theory to emerge, it is thought the windscreen gave way, incapacitating the pilots and leaving them unable to send out a distress call.

Germanwings Flight 4U 9525 news Updates -- March 25, 2015

Alps Plane Crash: Updates -- BBC
Germanwings Flight 4U 9525: Updates -- AP
Germanwings Airbus 320 crash: Hollande, Merkel and Rajoy visit site – live updates -- The Guardian
Germanwings plane crash live: New evidence suggests descent took 18 minutes - latest -- The Independent
Live: Hollande, Merkel and Rajoy visit Germanwings crash site -- France 24
Germanwings Flight 4U 9525 News Updates -- Euronews
Airbus A320 plane crash in Southern France LIVE UPDATES -- RT

Hollande, Merkel, Rajoy arrive in Alps for crash tribute -- Reuters
Search Resumes at Germanwings Crash Site -- VOA
Search operations restart at French Alps crash site -- Al Jazeera
Germanwings plane crash: Leaders visit Alps site -- BBC
France opens black box, hoping to unlock jet crash mystery -- AP
Germanwings plane crash investigators begin examining black box -- The Guardian
Germanwings plane crash: Search underway for second 'black box' -- CNN
Germanwings Crash Investigation Hits Snag in Retrieving Data -- NYT
Crash Experts Face Mystery of Eight-Minute Drop Without a Mayday -- Bloomberg
Pilots of A320 Made Contact With Dispatchers Moments Before Descent -- Sputnik
Helpless Air-Traffic Controllers Watched Germanwings’ Fatal Dive -- Bloomberg
Swedish football team avoids fatal flight 4U9525 after last-minute change of plan -- The Guardian
Two Americans aboard doomed German jetliner; photo of 'black box' released -- FOX News
The classmates who never came home: First picture of tragic German exchange students who died on doomed Flight 4U 9525 -- Daily Mail
A look at the nationalities of victims in France jet crash -- AP
What happened to Germanwings flight 4U 9525? -- The Guardian

Germanwings Flight 4U 9525 Crash News Updates -- March 24, 2015

Daily Mail: Search aircraft find the remains of Germanwings Flight 4U 9525 scattered all over an alpine mountainside: Riddle over why pilots didn't send SOS despite taking eight minutes to fall 32,000 feet

* Airbus A320 was carrying 144 passengers - including two babies and 16 German children - plus six crew members
* Plane plummetted into remote area of the French Alps en route from Barcelona in Spain to Dusseldorf in Germany
* Early reports said the pilots issued a Mayday signal and requested an emergency descent after reaching 38,000ft
* But sources later denied air traffic controllers received any such call, saying it was them that declared emergency
* Some 150 firefighters and police have been deployed to the scene, but warn it could take days to retrieve any bodies

The final moments of Germanwings Flight 4U 9525 were shrouded in mystery today after air traffic controllers claimed they received no SOS despite the jet nosediving 32,000ft in just eight minutes.

All 144 passengers and six crew were today presumed dead after the Airbus A320 crashed in a remote region of the French Alps en route from Spain to Germany.

Two babies were among 45 Spanish on board and 16 children from the same school on an exchange trip were among some 100 Germans also feared to have died.

Images from the first rescue helicopters to reach the remote crash site showed wreckage scattered across hundreds of metres of mountainside, with some debris the size of a car.

Germanwings Flight 4U 9525 Crash News Updates -- March 24, 2015

Airbus A320 crash in France: Live -- BBC
The Latest: France: 10 helicopters at Alps plane crash site -- AP
Live: 'No survivors' from Germanwings crash in southern France -- France 24
First pictures emerge of Germanwings Airbus A320 crash that killed 150 people in the French Alps: Live -- The Telegraph
Germanwings flight 4U9525 crashes in French Alps with 150 on board - live updates -- The Guardian
Airbus A320 plane crash in Southern France LIVE UPDATES -- RT

Jet crashes in Alps with 150 aboard; no survivors expected -- AP
Germanwings Airbus crashes in French Alps, 150 dead -- Reuters
Germanwings plane crash: What we know so far -- France 24
Germanwings airliner 4U 9525 crashes in French Alps -- BBC
Plane carrying 150 crashes in France; no survivors expected -- Washington Post
Germanwings Airbus Carrying 150 Crashes in French Alps -- NYT
150 feared dead after plane crashes in French Alps -- Al Jazeera
Rugged French Alps combed for evidence in plane crash believed to have killed 150 -- FOX News
Germanwings A320 Passenger Jet With 150 Aboard Crashes in Southern France -- Sputnik
Victims of Germanwings Airbus Crash From Germany, Spain, Turkey - Hollande -- Sputnik
Germanwings says plane crashed after eight-minute descent -- Reuters
French police say to take days to recover bodies in air crash -- Reuters
No signs of French crash survivors: Spanish king -- Reuters
Germany, France, Spain Agree to Jointly Investigate A320 Crash - Merkel -- Sputnik
Germany's Merkel to travel to Germanwings crash site in France -- Reuters
European Leaders Express Condolences to Families of Airbus A320 Passengers -- Sputnik
German town fears 16 school children on Germanwings plane -- Reuters
Spain's Deputy PM says 45 on crashed plane believed to be Spanish -- Reuters
Airline still notifying victims' relatives -- Daily Mail/AP
Germanwings, Lufthansa darken Twitter account images after crash -- CTV News
Germanwings A320 plane crash, in pictures -- The Telegraph
Airbus A320 aircraft are popular, relatively safe -- USA Today
Revealed: Germanwings flight 4U9525 received safety warning just four months ago after sister plane went into tailspin -- Daily Mail
7 facts about Lufthansa's Germanwings -- Reuters
Mechanical issue may have caused Germanwings crash -- CTV News
Why the Germanwings Plane Crash is So Surprising -- Simon Shuster, Time
What could have happened to Germanwings Airbus A320? -- The Telegraph
Airbus A320 Workhorse: 6,200 in Global Fleet, 12 Fatal Crashes -- Bloomberg
Airbus A320 in Facts and Details -- Sputnik
Timeline: Major air disasters -- Al Jazeera

10 Killed When Greek F16 Crashes At Spanish Air Base In Albacete During NATO Exercises

Smoke rises after a Greek F-16 fighter plane crashed during NATO training at the Albacete air base in Albacete, Spain, January 26, 2015. Credit: Reuters/Cadena Ser

Daily Mail: At least 10 people dead after Greek F-16 fighter jet crashes into NATO base in Spain during training

* Fighter jet lost power during take off and smashed into jet parking area
* Seven among the 13 injured are in a 'serious' condition in hospital
* Pilots were taking part in Nato's Tactical Leadership Programme
* Nationalities of the victims or the fate of the Greek pilots not yet known
* Italian ministry of defence says nine of its personnel are among those hurt

More News On Today's Fatal Greek F-16 Crash At A Spanish Air Base

Spain: 10 killed, 13 injured in crash of Greek F-16 jet at military base during NATO training -- AP
Ten killed in Greek fighter plane crash in Spain -- Reuters
Greek F-16 crashes in Spain during NATO exercise, killing 10 -- CNN
Greek fighter-jet crash in Spain leaves at least 10 dead -- The Guardian
Greek fighter jet crashes during NATO training session in Spain -- Deutsche Welle
Greek fighter jet crashes in Spain killing 10 people -- BBC
Spain: Nato F-16 explosion kills 10 as Greek fighter nosedives into Albacete airbase -- IBTimes
Greek F16 fighter jet crashes at Albacete airbase in central Spain -- RT
Greek F-16 Jet Explodes at Spanish Air Base: 10 Dead, 13 Injured (VIDEO) -- Sputnik

U.S. F-16 Air Force Pilot Killed In Mideast F-16 Crash Before Islamic State Mission

A U.S. Air Force pilot was killed when an F-16 Fighting Falcon crashed in a non-combat-related incident November 30. pic.twitter.com/nvmDnaQsnh
— CENTCOM CG PAO (@CENTCOMCGPAO) December 1, 2014

US Air Force Fighter Pilot Killed In Non-Combat Crash In Middle East As F-16 Comes Down Shortly After Take-Off -- Daily Mail

* US Air Force fighter pilot killed in the Middle East shortly after take-off
* Military said crash did not take place in Iraq or Syria where US planes are engaged in a bombing campaign against ISIS militants
* US has several Middle Eastern bases supporting aerial efforts against ISIS

A US Air Force fighter pilot was killed yesterday in a non-combat-related crash in the Middle East.

The F-16 jet crashed as it was returning to its base at an unspecified location in the region shortly after take-off.

The crash did not happen in Iraq or Syria, where US planes are engaged in a bombing campaign against Islamic State militants, the military said.

Read more ....

More News On The Death Of A U.S. F-16 Air Force Pilot When His Plane Crashed Before An Islamic State Mission

F-16 pilot killed in Middle East crash -- Air Force Times
Air Force pilot killed participating in Operation Inherent Resolve -- Stars and Stripes
Air Force F-16 pilot killed in crash in Middle East -- Washington Post
U.S. Air Force pilot killed in crash in Middle East: Central Command -- Reuters
American F-16 Pilot Killed In Middle East Crash -- Business Insider
U.S. Air Force pilot killed in F-16 crash in Middle East -- al.com
U.S. F-16 Pilot Killed in Middle East Crash -- USNI News
F-16 fighter pilot killed in Middle East crash -- USA Today

U.S. F-16 Crashes In the Gulf Of Mexico

An F-16 Fighting Falcon, similar to this one, was reported missing in the Gulf of Mexico south of Panama City, Fla., on Thursday. The Air Force and Coast Guard are searching. The one pictured is from Hill Air Force Base, Utah, takes off at Balad Air Base on April 21. The F-16 pilots provide close air support to U.S. Army ground units by identifying improvised explosive devices and emplacers in the area and possibly engaging them before they endanger the lives of U.S. and coalition forces. (Staff Sgt. Julianne Showalter, U.S. Air Force)

U.S. Coast Guard, Air Force Seek Missing Pilot In Gulf of Mexico -- Reuters

(Reuters) - The United State Air Force and Coast Guard crews searched the Gulf of Mexico on Thursday for a missing pilot whose F-16 fighter jet lost contact with its base during a routine training mission, officials said.

The aircraft, based out of Tyndall Air Force Base in the Florida Panhandle, was believed to have crashed about 57 miles south of Panama City, according to the U.S. Coast Guard.

No wreckage has been located, the Air Force said.

Read more ....

More News On Reports Of A U.S. F-16 Crashing In the Gulf Of Mexico

F-16 missing from Tyndall AFB thought to have crashed in Gulf -- Stars and Stripes
F-16 jet believed to have crashed in Gulf of Mexico -- AP
Tyndall Air Force Base loses contact with F-16, assumes it crashed into Gulf of Mexico: report -- New York Daily News
F-16 missing over Gulf of Mexico — Coast Guard searches for Fla. pilot -- Washington Times
Tyndall crews searching for missing F-16 -- Air Force Times
F-16 Jet Crashes in Gulf of Mexico, Crews Searching for Pilot -- NBC
Air Force F-16 fighter jet missing off Florida Gulf Coast -- Nola.com

F-16 Jets Collide In Midair Crash Over Kansas

Pictures of the F-16 wreckage near Moline, KS. Plane took off from Tulsa. Pilot ejected himself. @NewsOn6 pic.twitter.com/MlyBxkiCWx
— Allison Harris (@allisonlharris) October 21, 2014

F-16 Pilots OK After Midair Collision Over Kansas -- Yahoo News

One jet crashes in pasture; other makes it back to Oklahoma base

Two Oklahoma Air National Guard pilots escaped serious injury Monday after their F-16 jets collided midair near Moline, Kan., during an afternoon training flight.

Kansas Highway Patrol officials reported a large swath of wreckage slightly north of the Elk County town, nearly 75 miles southeast of Wichita and 100 miles north of Tulsa, where the fighters are based.

Local residents reported that a pilot from one of the Falcon fighters ejected safely and landed in a pasture. His jet crashed and burned, a particularly rare sight for the town of fewer than 500 people.

Read more ....

Update #1: Military converges at scene of Kansas F-16 jet collision -- AP
Update #2: F-16 Jets Collide In Horrific Midair Crash Over Kansas -- Inquisitr

My Comment: The pilots are lucky .... this midair collision is bad as it can get but in the final analysis .... they survived.

The Case Of A Plane Landing On A Highway In Kenya Ended Up Revealing How U.S. Forces Are Transported In Africa

Plane That Landed On African Highway Carrying U.S. Troops Gets Dismantled -- Washington Post

When a cargo plane landed on a Ugandan highway last month carrying U.S. troops, it grabbed attention and shed light on the low-key way in which American forces travel through Africa to carry out missions. But there’s more to the story: The aircraft will be dismantled, likely because it can’t fly from the same location again.

A news video of the plane — a CASA-212 aircraft, as the website Medium pointed out — shows it surrounded by Ugandan civilians after it made an emergency landing July 18. It will be hauled back “to its point of origin,” said Army Sgt. 1st Class Jessica Espinosa, a spokeswoman for U.S. Africa Command. It flew of out of Entebbe International Airport in Uganda, according to this news account:

Read more ....

My Comment: Now we know how U.S. soldiers are sometimes transported in Africa to carry out missions.