Report: Co-pilot persuaded captain to leave cockpit

The co-pilot of the doomed Germanwings flight repeatedly suggested that the captain leave the cockpit, then locked him out and stymied his desperate efforts to return, according to data recorder transcripts reported Sunday.

Flight 9525's captain, Patrick Sondheimer, screamed, "For God's sake, open the door!" when he realized co-pilot Andreas Lubitz had essentially jammed the cockpit door, according to transcripts obtained by the German newspaper Bild.

French and German investigators say Lubitz, 27, deliberately crashed the Düsseldorf-bound jet into the French Alps less than an hour after departing Barcelona on Tuesday, killing himself and the other 149 people on board.

In Rome, Pope Francis offered prayers for the victims after Palm Sunday Mass in St. Peter's Square.

The transcript in Bild, translated by London's Daily Mail, describes a tranquil cockpit after takeoff where Lubitz suggested Sondheimer go to the toilet, noting that Sondheimer had not done so in Barcelona. About 20 minutes later, Lubitz says, "You can go now."

Two minutes later the pilot says, "You can take over," and apparently leaves the cockpit. The plane begins its descent almost immediately at 10:29 a.m. local time.

Within minutes, Bild describes a loud bang as someone attempts to enter the cockpit, then Sondheimer yells, "For God's sake, open the door!" Passengers are heard screaming.

At 10:35 a.m., more banging, and less than two minutes later the pilot is heard yelling, "Open the goddam door!"

At 10:40 a.m., the right wing of the jet clips a mountain and the last sounds are those of passengers screaming, Bild reports.

German newspaper Die Welt reported that Lubitz was suffering from a "psychosomatic" illness and that investigators found prescription medication in his Düsseldorf apartment. Other German media reported that Lubitz apparently suffered from depression. According to Bild, Lubitz was being treated for vision problems that he feared could jeopardize his career.

The pastor of the Lutheran church in Lubitz's hometown of Montabaur said Sunday that the community stands by him and his family.

"For us, it makes it particularly difficult that the only victim from Montabaur is suspected to have caused this tragedy," pastor Michael Dietrich told the Associated Press. "The co-pilot, the family, belong to our community, and we stand by this, and we embrace them and will not hide this, and want to support the family in particular."

Philip Bramley, whose son Paul, 27, a Briton, died in the crash, said such an incident "should never happen again."

He said, "What happened on the morning of 24 March was the act of a person who at the very least was ill," Sky News reported Saturday. "If there was a motive or reason, we don't want to hear it. It's not relevant. What is relevant is this should never happen again. My son and everyone on that plane should not be forgotten ever."

Bramley added: "I believe the airlines should be more transparent and our finest pilots looked after properly. We put our lives and our children's lives in their hands."