As the investigation into the Germanwings crash descends into a joke, there are some immediate steps which could be taken to reduce the risk of a repeat.
Tragic as the death of 150 innocent people in the Airbus crash in the French Alps is, the outcome could have been many magnitudes worse if the plane had crashed into the Cadarache nuclear fusion facility, virtually on its flight path.
Given Cadarache, urgent consideration should surely be given to what measures can be implemented to stop a commercial airliner from ever being weaponized and directed at a nuclear reactor.
The installation of malware into the avionics bay during the repairs of the Germamwings Airbus, which took place one day prior to the flight, seems to me to be the most plausible explanation for the crash. The long glide to destruction of the plane does not seem to be consistent with missile damage, rather with the autopilot system being hijacked.
Retired Lufthansa pilot Peter Haisenko pointed out that a commerical plane does not fly online. It cannot be reached by a laptop. That means, any malware to take control of the autopilot has to be installed on the ground.
Even if this conjecture is wrong, as a precaution, airline crews could start systematically checking the avionics bay for malware and USB sticks before take off. Obviously, they will need some training and instructions on what to look for, but a rapid sweep of electronics should not be that difficult.
Checking for malware will offer added protection to passengers and crew.
Also, nuclear sites surely need effective defenses, maybe even ground to air missile systems.
