US had questioned mental health of Germanwings pilot

WASHINGTON (AP) — Government records show Federal Aviation Administration officials questioned the mental fitness of the pilot who crashed an airliner in the French Alps, but then awarded him a U.S. pilot license after his German doctor said he had fully recovered from severe depression.

Records released by the FAA show that while Andreas Lubitz was training to be an airline pilot at a flight school in Arizona he initially submitted a medical form to the FAA asserting he had no mental disorders. He then resubmitted the form acknowledging he had been treated for severe depression.

The FAA initially sent Lubitz a letter warning that his license application could be denied and requesting a letter from his doctor. The license was granted after his doctor described his treatment and said he had recovered.

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