Chilling prediction of Germanwings crash pilot Andreas Lubitz: 'everyone will know my name'

The revelations came as the father of one of three British victims of the tragedy yesterday made an emotional appeal for the dead not to be forgotten and called for airlines to look after their pilots "properly".

In an interview with a German newspaper, the ex-girlfriend of 27-year-old Lubitz, identified only as Maria W, said he told her: "One day I'm going to do something that will change the whole system, and everyone will know my name and remember."

The flight stewardess, who had a five-month relationship with Lubitz in 2014, said he had spoken of receiving psychiatric treatment and suffered from nightmares.

"At night, he woke up and screamed 'We're going down!', because he had nightmares," she said. "He knew how to hide from other people what was really going on inside."

She also claimed that he feared his health problems would prevent him from fulfilling his "dream job" as a captain and long-haul pilot.

Questions continue to be asked about Lubitz's mental and physical health after he locked the captain out of the Airbus' cockpit and brought down the airliner.

Yesterday the New York Times cited unnamed German sources as saying that he may have been receiving treatment for an unspecified vision problem that could have affected his ability to carry on working as a pilot.

Authorities have already revealed he hid a sick note declaring him unfit to work on the day of the disaster. The evidence came from the search of Lubitz's homes in two German cities.

Prosecutor's spokesman Ralf Herrenbrueck said torn-up sick notes for the day of the crash "support the current preliminary assessment that the deceased hid his illness from his employer and colleagues".

Such sick notes from doctors excusing employees from work are common in Germany and issued even for minor illnesses. Herrenbrueck did not reveal details of what illness Lubitz was suffering from.

He said other medical documents found indicated "an existing illness and appropriate medical treatment", but that no suicide note was found. He added there was no indication of any political or religious motivation for Lubitz's actions.

Dusseldorf University Hospital said Lubitz had been treated as a patient there over the past two months and he last attended for "diagnostic clarifications" on March 10. It declined to provide details about his condition but denied reports that it had treated the co-pilot for depression.

Other reports have suggested Lubitz recently split from his girlfriend and that he made an attempt to win her back by buying a brand new Audi car a few weeks ago.

Yesterday Philip Bramley, the father of British victim Paul Bramley, said what had happened was the act of a person who "at the very least was ill".

But he added: "If there was a motive or a reason we do not want to hear it. It is not relevant. What is relevant, is that it should never happen again; my son and everyone on that plane should not be forgotten, ever."

Speaking from the French town of Seynes-les-Alpes, close to the crash site, he 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."

Paul Bramley, 28, originally from Hull, was studying hotel management in Lucerne, Switzerland and was returning from a short holiday in Barcelona.

Speaking of his son, Bramley said: "I will not get him back or be able to take him home because of the nature of the impact. Me and my family will visit here forever."

Other British victims included seven-month-old Julian Pracz-Bandres, from Manchester, who was killed with his mother Marina Bandres Lopez Belio, 37, originally from Spain. Senior quality manager Martyn Matthews, 50, from Wolverhampton, also died in the tragedy.

The sombre mission to recover the remains of the victims continued yesterday, with rescue crews being ferried by helicopter into the difficult-to-access ravine where the wreckage is spread.

Five scientists are working in Seyne-les-Alpes to try to identify the remains of the victims. Families have provided objects such as toothbrushes to help with the identification process.

"We have not found a single body intact," said Colonel Patrick Touron, one of France's leading forensic investigators. "DNA will be the determining element that will lead to identification."

The plane's first black box, containing the cockpit recordings, was recovered within hours of the crash, but the search is still continuing for the second black box, which contains information on the position and condition of almost every major part of the plane.

Lufthansa - which is the parent company of Germanwings - has offered immediate aid of up to £36,500 per passenger to relatives of the crash victims. But legal experts say the airlines could face compensation claims running into hundreds of millions of pounds unless they can prove they were not at fault.

Lufthansa chief executive Carsten Spohr has confirmed there was a "several-month" gap in Lubitz's training six years ago, but would not elaborate further. He said Lubitz had subsequently "not only passed all medical tests but also his flight training, all flying tests and checks".

In the wake of the crash, European safety regulators have issued a "temporary recommendation" to ensure that at least two crew - including a pilot - are in the cockpit at all times, a requirement which was already in place in the US.