Crashed Germanwings flight 4U9525 received safety warning just four months ago after sister plane went into tailspin 

• Sister plane of that involved in today's crash lost altitude late last year
• Air safety agency sent out directive warning operators to be aware
• Pilot in that incident pulled the plane out of the dive averting problems
• Airbus A320s involved in number of accidents since introduced in 1980s
• Plane is considered extremely safe and is widely used around world

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A similar Airbus plane to that involved in today's crash was put down in the Hudson River, New York in 2009

Only the quick thinking of a pilot averted a similar tragedy last year when a sister plane of the Germanwings jet suddenly lost altitude and nose-dived.

A Lufthansa A321 – a longer version of the A320 – unexpectedly descended 3,000ft while cruising over Pamplona, Spain, last November.

The jet, with 109 passengers and crew aboard, was at an altitude of 31,000ft when it started to lose height. The flight crew managed to regain control at 28,000ft. 

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In that incident, the pilot managed to crash land in the river and the passengers were saved after a bird strike

The A321 involved in the previous incident is a slightly longer version of the plane involved in today's crash, carrying an extra 40 passengers.  

Germanwings today confirmed that today's downed aircraft underwent a major inspection at Lufthansa in summer 2013 while it was last checked yesterday.  

The plane that crashed was called 'Mannheim' and made its first test flight in November 1990.

It was then purchased by Lufthansa and had its first commercial flight in February 1991.

Experts said the aircraft would have been nearing the end of its commercial life after more than 24 years of service. 

Since the first version of the Airbus A320 was released in 1987, around 4,000 have been built and the company say one takes off or lands somewhere in the world every 2.5 seconds.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-