The co-pilot Germanwings passenger jet that crashed into the French Alps had to stop his pilot training in 2009 because he was depressed and suffering "burnout".
Andreas Guenter Lubitz paused his training with German flag-carrier Lufthansa for several months because of his psychological issues, neighbours and friends have told Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung.
The mother of a schoolmate of Lubitz said her daughter had seen Lubitz just before Christmas and that he appeared normal.
She described the 28-year-old pilot, from Montabaur, Rheinland Pfalz in Germany, as a "lovely boy" who "had a good family background" but that six years ago he was struggling.
"Apparently he had a burnout, he was in depression," the unnamed mother said.
Lubitz was at the controls as Germanwings flight 4U 9524 descended from 38,000 feet into the side of the mountain, while his captain Patrick Sonderheimer desperately tried to re-enter the cockpit.
The plane's black box appears to show that, although the captain punched the emergency number into the cockpit door to gain entry, the co-pilot inside then relocked the door.
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