by Donald Wood
Last updated: 12:16 PM ET, Fri March 27, 2015
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Startling news from the Germanwings tragedy earlier this week continues to be revealed to the public, and now the plane's co-pilot Andreas Lubitz is being investigated for reportedly hiding an illness from his employer.
According to BBC.com, German prosecutors say they have found "torn-up sick notes" in Lubitz's homes-his residence in Düsseldorf and his parents' residence near Frankfurt-including a note covering the day of the incident. While investigators did not disclose what type of illness the pilot was suffering from, the German media is reporting that he had dealt with severe depression in the past.
Lubitz is accused of locking Germanwings flight 4U 9525's main pilot out of the cockpit and initiating a descent sequence that killed all 150 passengers and crew on board when it struck the mountains in the French Alps on Tuesday.
Prosecutors are reporting that they have seized medical documents which show he had an "existing illness and appropriate medical treatment," according to BBC.com. They also report that the ripped-up notes also indicate that he was hiding the illness from his employer.
Reports surfacing from Germany news outlets now also suggest that Lubitz began pilot training in 2008, but was forced to undergo treatment when he, "suffered a serious depressive episode" in 2009. In the report from BBC.com, "Lubitz's employers have confirmed his training was interrupted for several months six years ago, without explaining why."
The aviation community has not hesitated to act on the tragedy and is already implementing new rules and regulations. The first step has been to institute requirements that include two pilots or trained personnel must be in the cockpit at all times.
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