Police searched the house of the Germanwings co-pilot Andreas Lubitz on Thursday, as it emerged that he intentionally initiated the descent of the plane, which crashed in the French Alps on Tuesday.

According to the local government in Dusseldorf, the most recent regular security check on Lubitz, which had been carried out on January 27, established nothing unusual.

Nothing emerged after checks with the authorities in Bremen, where the co-pilot went to flight school, as well as in the Rhineland-Palatinate state, where his hometown is situated.

Previous security checks, which were carried out in 2008 and 2010, had also showed nothing irregular, ABC News reports.

The local authority is responsible for conducting regular checks on personnel at airlines based in the region in order to uncover whether any employees have criminal record or links to extremists.

Lubitz was a 28-year-old German citizen, who lived with his parents in his hometown Montabaur, which is located between Frankfurt and Bonn.

The co-pilot also probably had a lodging in Dusseldorf, where his job with Germanwings was based, Euronews reports.

He joined Germanwings in September 2013 after completing a training at the Lufthansa Flight Training School in Bremen.

Germany's interior minister said no evidence showed Lubitz had any links to terrorism and the Marseille prosecutor Brice Robin similarly stated that nothing suggested he carried out a terrorist attack.

According to latest reports, the co-pilot started the descent after he was left alone in the cockpit, did not allow the pilot back in the cabin, killing himself and the remaining 149 people on board.