One of the pilots of the Germanwings aircraft that crashed into the French Alps killing 150 people was locked out of the cockpit, according to reports.
Official investigators who were examining data and details of conversations from the cockpit of the black box that was found amongst the wreckage of the doomed Airbus A320.
Although the official investigators have not yet announced the official cause of the crash, the New York Times have quoted a senior military source involved in the investigation as saying one of the two Germanwings pilots was locked out of the cockpit and could not get back in.
The New York Times quote the source as saying” The guy outside is knocking lightly on the door and there is no answer. And then he hits the door stronger and no answer.
“There is never an answer. You can hear he is trying to smash the door down.
“We don’t know yet the reason why one of the guys went out.
“But what is sure is that at the very end of the flight, the other pilot is alone and does not open the door.”
Cockpit doors on commercial aircraft have been made tougher to enter since the September 11 attacks in 2001 to stop terrorists or other intruders from taking control of the aircraft.
Following the disaster Lufthansa, the parent company of Germanwings, said: “We cannot comprehend how a technically flawless airplane steered by two experience pilots could encounter such a situation at cruising altitude.”