Germanwings captain Patrick Sonderheimer can be heard desperately shouted “open the goddamn door”, according to Bild.

The tabloid said accident investigators heard a recording which starts with the captain apologizing to passengers for a 26-minute delay in departing Barcelona, and promising to make up the time on the flight to Dusseldorf.

For the next 20 minutes, he has a conversation with co-pilot Andreas Lubitz, who tells him he can go to the toilet at any time and he’ll take over the controls, noting that the pilot didn’t go to the lavatory in Barcelona.

At 10.27, when the airliner reached its cruising altitude of 38,000ft, captain Sonderheimer tells his first officer to prepare for landing in Dusseldorf.

After another two minutes Sondheimer tells Lubitz: “You can take over.”

Then, there is the sound of a seat being pushed back and the door closing.

At 10.29, the flight radar records the plane descending.

At 10.32 air traffic controllers try to contact the aircraft, but get no response.

According to the voice recorder, plane’s automatic alarm signals a “sink rate” alert almost at the same time.

Shortly afterwards there is a loud thud, which sounds like someone banging on the cockpit’s door.

Then captain Sondheimer shouts: “For God’s sake, open the door”.

In the background, passengers can be heard screaming.

According to French authorities, at 10.35 “again the sound of loud banging against the cockpit door” is heard. The plane is still at an altitude of 7,000ft.

About 90 seconds later there is a new warning aleter – “Ground – Pull up – Pull up”.

The captain is heard desperately shouting: “Open the goddamn door!”.

At 10.38, the aircraft is on a north-east course over the French Alps. The sound of Lubitz breathing can be heard in the cockpit but he says nothing.

At 10.40 the aircraft hits the mountainside with its right wing. The last sounds are more screams by passengers.