French prosecutors are to investigate whether manslaughter charges should be made in relation to the Germanwings plane crash in which 150 people died.
However, it has not been made clear who the charges would be brought against.
Marseilles prosecutor Brice Robin said there was “no doubt” that co-pilot Andreas Lubitz deliberately crashed the Airbus A320 in the French Alps, causing the death of everyone onboard. The passengers were mostly Spanish and German nationals, including 16 schoolchildren.
Both Germanwings and Lufthansa have previously said that Lubitz, 27, had passed all fitness-to-fly tests.
Lufthansa has also acknowledged that it knew the co-pilot had suffered from severe depression while training for his pilot’s licence in 2009.
Mr Robin said some doctors treating Lubitz felt he was unfit to fly but were unable to tell his employers because of German laws on patient confidentiality.
He said a preliminary investigation by three magistrates would focus on whether the gap between what the pilot’s doctors knew, and what his employers knew, points to manslaughter charges.