Killer
pilot Andreas Lubitz told an ex-lover he was planning an act so heinous
his name would be remembered for ever, it was sensationally claimed last
night. Lubitz
was a tormented, erratic man who was a master of hiding his darkest
thoughts and would wake up from nightmares screaming ‘we’re going down’,
the former partner said.
The
26-year-old Germanwings stewardess, known only as Maria W, revealed to a
German newspaper how Lubitz ominously told her last year: ‘One day I
will do something that will change the whole system, and then all will
know my name and remember it.’
When
she heard about the crash of Germanwings Flight 4U9525 on Tuesday, she
remembered Lubitz’s menacing prophecy. ‘I never knew what he meant, but
now it makes sense,’ she told Bild.
Maria told
the newspaper that she met Lubitz when the pair flew together across
Europe and said they dated for five months last year, spending 'several
nights' in hotels.
She
said he was a 'nice and open-minded' man but claimed there was a
difference between his professional and his private ego, with him being
'soft' and needing love when the couple were alone but becoming 'someone
else' when they talked about work.
She added to Bild: 'We
spoke a lot about work and then he became another person. He became
agitated about the circumstances in which he had to work, too little
money, anxiety about his contract and too much pressure.'
His
personal problems and erratic behaviour became so severe that the
flight attendant decided to call the relationship off after fearing
his increasingly volatile temper. 'During
conversations he'd suddenly throw a tantrum and scream at me,' she
said. 'I was afraid. He even once locked me in the bathroom for a long
time.'
Despite parting from Lubitz, Maria said previous conversations with him suddenly 'made sense' when she heard about the crash.
She
said: ‘When I heard about the crash, there was just a tape playing in
my head of what he said, “One day I will do something that will change
the system and everyone will then know my name and remember me”.
‘I did not know what he meant by that at the time, but now it’s clear.’
She said he had 'never really' spoken to her about any illness but had told her he was getting psychiatric treatment.
She
added: 'The torn up sick notes make sense now to me and were a clear
sign that he did not want to admit that his big dream of flying as a
captain was over.'
It
also emerged that Lubitz was familiar with the area of the French Alps
where he brought down the Airbus A320, having previously completed a
gliding course there.
Unusually,
he had worked as a flight attendant for nearly a year before becoming a
pilot, which led to teasing from his colleagues.
As
investigators continue to scour his complicated background, it also
emerged that the fitness fanatic was receiving treatment for his mental
health issues and apparently feared his flying licence would be taken
away if his airline learned the extent of his psychological breakdown.
At
least one of the medical certificates found by investigators covered
Tuesday, the day Lubitz locked his captain out of the cockpit and calmly
crashed the aircraft. Reports in Germany last night claimed that two
doctors had signed him off sick on the day of the disaster.
More
sick notes are said to have covered other days when he flew despite
being told not to. But police said they found no suicide note in a
five-hour search.
Speaking
to source, a Germanwings spokesman stressed the company was
unaware of any medical notes and said it had been Lubitz's
responsibility to tell his employers he was unfit to fly.
Described
as a man whose life-long obsession had been to become a pilot, it has
been suggested he may have feared his flying licence might not be
renewed on medical grounds. One friend said he 'would have died' if he
had not passed his flying exams.
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