The unfolding drama has all the makings of a best-selling murder
mystery.
First, the pilot tried to return to the cockpit but the door was
locked.
Next, he called out to the co-pilot within but there was no answer.
He took an axe to begin breaking the door - but not soon enough.
The co-pilot deliberately changed the settings of the plane so that
it would make a steep descent.
Air-traffic controllers tried frantically to reach him but, again,
he refused to respond (though his breathing could be heard).
After 8 minutes, it was all over - the plane hit the mountain and
bursts into flames.
While the suspense was magnetic, the results were catastrophic. One
hundred and fifty passengers meet a swift and horrific death on the slopes of
the French Alps. Among the dead were 16 students from a small town school on an
exchange program. Two babies also perished.
The unfolding drama of Germanwings Flight 9525 from Barcelona to
Dusseldorf has become an international media event. Continuous and extensive
coverage has been playing since the crash on Tuesday, March 24th, 2015.
Spanish, French, and German political leaders, along with families of the
victims, have visited the crash site to pay respect to the victims.
By recovering one of the flight recorders, the above scenario was
revealed. The plane was deliberately crashed and, for all intents and purposes,
the co-pilot is guilty of nothing less than mass murder.
Who was this man? He was 27 year old Andreas Lubitz, a German
national. He did proper flight training, which was interrupted for a period
because of a ‘severe depressive episode’ and possible ‘burnout.’ At the time,
he was declared ‘not suitable for flying.’ After a year and a half of
depression treatment, he was allowed to continue training and declared ‘100%
fit to fly.’
People who knew him said he was a nice, quiet, funny young man who
fit in well. Those same people are now speechless - how can this same man have
committed such a barbarous act? No doubt, his parents have double-grief: first,
their son died prematurely and violently; second, their son intentionally
caused the plane crash.
As of this writing, the police have visited his residences and taken
items, including a computer. He apparently refused to use a doctor’s script to
call sick from work on the very day of the crash. Lubitz may have recently had
a relational break-up and this may have pushed him off the edge.
Regardless of further findings or Mr. Lubitz’s motives, some points
need to be borne in mind.
First, air travel is the safest mode of transportation imaginable.
Yes, there are accidents - incidental and deliberate - but when you consider
that 10,000s of planes fly every single day worldwide, crashes really are rare.
Apparently, after 9-11, cockpits have become impregnable fortresses
which, in this case, was a liability. A new regulation will surely be
instituted: there must be two pilots in the cockpit at all times.
Second, mental and spiritual health are as important goals as
physical health. Often, mental illness can be worse than physical, and there is
still a lot of uncertainty and debate on how to heal it. Our minds can be a
battle ground so we need to commit them to God for renewal by the Holy Spirit
(Romans 12:2). II Timothy 1:7 makes a superlative promise: For
God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a
sound mind.
Third, we live in a fallen, corrupt, selfish world which also is
heavily influenced by Satan and demon powers. People, particularly in the West,
are taught to be self-centered, focused, and obsessed. Narcissism is at
epidemic levels. Like the mass shootings in the United States, the message
seems to be: I’m miserable, so you must
die. For this reason, crazy things can happen to decent people. While we
need to be aware of these things, neither should we fear them. Philippians
4:6-7 stands as tall today as it did 2,000 years ago: worry about nothing, pray
about everything, and God’s peace will protect your hearts and minds in Christ.
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