BERLIN--German airlines will introduce a rule that the cockpit must be staffed with two crew members at all times in the wake of the crash in France, the German Aviation Association said Friday.

"Our German air carriers introduce a new preliminary rule which foresees that two authorized persons must be in the cockpit of a plane at all times," the association said. The rule is a first step following a meeting with the German transport ministry and the Federal Aviation Office on Friday, it added.

The European Union is also considering beefing up its rules this way, according to an official.

French prosecutors said they suspect the co-pilot of the Germanwings plane that crashed on Tuesday, Andreas Lubitz, locked the captain out of the cockpit before crashing the airliner into the ground, killing himself and the 149 other people on board.

--Valentina Pop in Brussels contributed to this article.

Write to Friedrich Geiger at friedrich.geiger@dowjones.com

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