On 24 March Germanwings
Flight 9525 crashed on the side of a mountain range in the French Alps. The flight
was on its way to Düsseldorf Airport in from Barcelona–El Prat Airport in Spain
and piloted by Andreas Lubitz who purposely flew the Airbus A320 downward and
caused the deaths of everyone on board including 144 passengers and 6 crew
members. Lubitz was earlier treated for depression and was considered unfit to
fly but he hid the information from his employers.
Andreas Lubitz was
reported to have had a history of mental health problems that he hid from his
employers. Investigators searched Lubitz’s apartment and reported that they had
found torn-up notes indicating that the co-pilot was mentally unfit to fly as
well as boxes of medication. In 2010 Lubitz was enrolled in a training program
for Lufthansa Airlines and tried applying for a U.S. pilot’s certificate but he
would also need a medical certificate. FAA documents show that he replied “no”
on an application in response to a question asking whether he had been treated
for any medical health illness but the response was later changed to “yes” by a
medical examiner after discovering that he was treated for severe depression
earlier. Lubitz was able to receive the medical certificate after his
psychologist in Germany provided the FAA with a letter stating that he was
completely recovered. The FAA then sent Lubitz a letter saying that he would receive
the medical certificate but that he would be prohibited from flying if his
depression returned.
Flight 9525 has not been
the only case where mental illness has been a factor in aviation accidents. In
1982 Japan Airlines Flight 350 crashed on approach to Haneda Airport in Tokyo
Bay. The cause of the crash was determined to be deliberate action by the pilot,
Captain Seiji Katagiri. He was later found to be suffering from mental illness
before the accident and was later found not guilty due to insanity.
The FAA monitors the
health of pilots through a number of requirements. Pilots under 40 are required
to have their medical certificates renewed annually while pilots over 40 have
their certificates renewed every 6 months. There is currently no specific test
of mental health done by the FAA According to the Guide for Aviation Medical
Examiners, the FAA does not require examiners to perform a formal psychiatric
evaluation but the Examiner should form a general impression on the mental and
emotional health of the pilot. I feel that the current method of evaluating the
mental health of pilots is not adequate for the 21st century. Mental
health is not always easily visible and requires more personal screening by
medical professionals.
Accidents involving
mental health are rare but when they do happen the results are usually deadly.
Mental health problems will often go unnoticed and pilots suffering from mental
illness may not only be afraid to come forward due to fear of losing their job
but also due to embarrassment. I think that the main problem that will be prevalent
throughout the aviation industry will be getting pilots to voluntarily admit
deficiencies in their mental health status. Another problem will be the
implementing of mental health tests. Some issues that I see coming are who
should evaluate mental health, who should be evaluated, and will the costs
outweigh the rewards?
Sources:
Guide for Aviation Medical Examiners. (2011, March 7).
Retrieved September 21, 2015, from
http://www.faa.gov/about/office_org/headquarters_offices/avs/offices/aam/ame/guide/app_process/exam_tech/item47/et/
Käckenhoff, T. (2015, March 27). Torn-up sick notes
show crash pilot should have been grounded. Retrieved September 20, 2015, from
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/03/27/us-france-crash-idUSKBN0MN11N20150327
Northam, J. (2015, April 30). Documents Show FAA
Questioned Mental Fitness of Germanwings Co-Pilot Andreas Lubitz. Retrieved
September 20, 2015, from
http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2015/04/30/403356547/documents-show-faa-questioned-mental-fitness-of-germanwings-co-pilot-andreas-lub
I enjoyed your post, and I think that on the stance of pilots having trouble disclosing this kind of personal information is correct. The FAA needs to create a safe environment for pilots to want to discuss when they are having issues both mentally and physically as well. Most pilots more than likely have a fear that they won’t have a job anymore if they disclose that they might be suffering from a mental illness. This is when the FAA needs to step in to make a change on the subject.
ReplyDeleteNice job on the post, I agree that there needs to be a better method for identifying mental health issues, perhaps more training for all parties’ involved-FAA, Medical Examiners, and company training.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you I do think that the one reason pilots do not disclose their mental health status due to the fact that they are scared of the outcome. For your question of “who should evaluate mental health?” I think that the FAA would need to certify some mental health/ Behavioral specialist just like they do for the AME. And “who should be evaluated?” Everyone. “Will the cost outweigh the rewards?” the reward would be ensuring public safety and doing everything possible to do that.
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