Pilots insist that the introduction of specific mental health tests will prove challenging to implement as they caution against knee-jerk reactions in the wake of the Germanwings tragedy.

The Airline Pilots Association yesterday said pilots were subjected to strict medical assessments every year but insisted mental health assessments were subjective.

“Their [mental health checks] reliability is questionable and would never assure that any risk cases are entirely detected,” Alpa said.

The air tragedy that killed 150 people in the French Alps last week has so far been blamed on the German co-pilot’s decision to ram the airplane into a mountainside.

Investigators have said the co-pilot was alone in the cockpit after he locked the door when the pilot exited. He is said to have had a history of mental illness.

But while it described the incident as a betrayal of people’s trust, Alpa said it preferred promoting further education on mental health issues among pilots.

“While improvements could be made, most notably on how pilots are certified unfit to fly in the short term... [we would promote] the introduction or improvement of programmes designed to encourage pilots to confidentially come forward and seek assistance if required,” Alpa said.

The organisation said such programmes should be fully supported by operators and pilots’ associations.

Alpa welcomed new procedures to increase overall security, adding the secured cockpit concept should remain a priority.

“While welcoming the new EASA recommendation requiring two crew members in the cockpit at all times, we urge everyone concerned to avoid knee-jerk reactions to such an unfortunate, yet rare, event. Following the conclusion of the investigation, it would be worth reviewing fully the fundamentals of cockpit security and access procedures, with recommendations being made after appropriate risk assessments and careful considerations of all probable scenarios and consequences.”

Alpa also expressed concern at the immediate leaking of sensitive cockpit voice recorder information. It insisted the release of such data so early in the probe cast a bad light on the whole investigation.

It was through the cockpit voice recorder that investigators arrived at the conclusion that the co-pilot locked himself inside the cockpit alone.