The CEO of
Turkish Airlines has urged single pilots to marry, after the Germanwings
tragedy was blamed on a pilot with psychological problems.
The CEO of
Turkish Airlines has urged single pilots to marry, after the Germanwings
tragedy was blamed on a pilot with psychological problems.
The
tragedy last month "taught us new things and piloting is a very critical
task. The lifestyle of pilots - be they men or women - is very important,"
Temel Kotil was quoted as saying by the Hurriyet daily.
Kotil told
new pilots of Turkey’s flag carrier that the Germanwings crash showed the
importance of pilots’ “lifestyles".
"The
accident happened after the pilot's girlfriend left him. So my dear friends,
take into account that we advise our single pilots to get married," he added.
Initial
reports suggested the Germanwings co-pilot Andreas Lubitz had broken up with
his girlfriend, but this was later called into question.
Lubitz,
who had been diagnosed as suicidal in the past, is believed to have
intentionally flown the plane into the mountainside after locking the pilot out
of the cockpit.
All 150
people on board were killed when the plane smashed into the French Alps.
Kotil,
whose airline is one the fastest growing carriers in the world, said there
should be more female pilots at Turkish Airlines.
He said
out of 86 new pilot graduates, only three are women and there were only 40
women pilots in the entire company out of 4000 pilots.