Question

Based on your research, how are civil aviation accidents investigated when the accident takes place in another country of the carrier's flag. Discuss how general aviation accidents are investigated.

Answer 1

AVIATION ACCIDENT ANALYSIS :

Aviation accident analysis is performed to determine the cause of errors once an accident has happened. In the modern aviation industry, it is also used to analyze a database of past accidents in order to prevent an accident from happening. Many models have been used not only for the accident investigation but also for educational purpose.

Per the Convention on International Civil Aviation, if an aircraft of a contracting State has an accident or incident in another contracting State, the State where the accident occurs will institute an inquiry. The Convention defines the rights and responsibilities of the states.

FOR BETTER UNDERSTANDING I HAVE MENTIONED THE CASE STUDY OF IRAN AIR CRASH INVESTIGATION :-

What is the protocol on air accidents? How does the black box help? What happens if a country admits there has been a mistake?

The story so far: On January 8, 2020, a Ukraine International Airlines Boeing 737-800, on a flight from Tehran, Iran to Kiev, Ukraine, a nearly 2,300 km route, fell to the ground after initially climbing to about 8,000 ft. There was no communication from the crew of flight PS752 about unusual conditions. There were no survivors among the 176 passengers and crew. On January 11, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani admitted that internal investigation had concluded that “regrettably missiles fired due to human error caused the horrific crash”. The air accident happened in the backdrop of geopolitical tensions between Iran and the United States.

How far has the investigation progressed?

On January 9, 2020, the Aircraft Accident Investigation Board (AAIB), Civil Aviation Organisation, Islamic Republic of Iran, put out an initial report (State File Number: A981018URPSR) on the “accident”.

It cited witnesses on the ground as well as the crew of overflights reporting an “intensifying fire” on the aircraft before it hit the ground, causing an explosion. It also pointed to crash site track analysis indicating a change in aircraft direction “following a technical problem” and of it returning to the airport.

The AAIB is now in possession of the aircraft’s black boxes, which include the Flight Data Recorder (FDR) and Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR). While fire and the impact of the accident have damaged both devices, their “memory parts” are in good condition.

Iran has followed investigatory procedures based on Annex 13 to the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), the UN body. These include putting out relevant news and information, initiating forensic identification, protecting crash site evidence and sending an initial notifications to Ukraine, the U.S., and also to Sweden, Canada and Afghanistan (as countries of the passengers).

What are black box technologies? What is their role in the investigation?

The Ukrainian aircraft, which was delivered in 2016, is a new generation jet equipped with modern avionics.Black box manufacturing is now a field populated by multiple manufacturers, the more prominent names being Honeywell Aerospace, L3Harris Technologies and Teledyne. Black boxes are multi-channel recording devices, nowadays solid-state, and no longer tape. Tiny chips record hundreds of streams of data on parameters that include aircraft performance (speed, height, rate of climb or descent, flight path, location, fuel levels, engine temperature and exhaust as well as flap positions), the state of other systems and other equipment. Earlier, data had to be recorded on separate devices, but technology is now advanced to have one device cover a range of data recording functions. Regulation is also moving towards an aircraft having two such devices. Together, the data and cockpit recorders (electronic flight data recorders) help understand the ‘what’, ‘how’ and ‘why’ of the event.

A black box must be able to withstand many accident scenarios. According to the German Federal Bureau of Aircraft Accident Investigation, tests include ‘crash tests against concrete at 750 km per hour, withstanding a static load of 2.25 tonnes for at least five minutes, a maximum temperature of 1,100 degrees Celsius for 60 minutes and water pressure at a depth of about 20,000 feet. Modern devices emit signals on contact with salt water (emergency over sea), with a range transmission of 2 km’.

The voice recorder logs almost every sound in the flight deck which includes air traffic control transmissions, crew conversations and even the sounds of switches and engine noise. In newer devices, recording can go up to 120 minutes at a stretch before being overwritten. In modern aircraft, this is automatic.

The data helps experts piece together the cause of an accident or serious incident. Investigators, according to the German bureau, do not have to fully reconstruct a flight. Much of the information needed can be deciphered from the parameters rather than using a flight simulator or animation.

Complete black box analysis can be done only by a few specialised agencies worldwide, especially as there are various models; the West leads in this. Specialised laboratories can pitch in too. The German bureau, for example, can examine western and Russian devices.

Black box analysis can also give rise to controversies. A ‘who best can read them’ situation has often played out in air accidents in developing countries.

In the final analysis, with the impact of some of the more recent air crashes/disappearances, such as Malaysia Airlines flight MH370, in 2014, technology could move in a new direction: of data streaming using cloud-based satellite links and a data centre, cockpit video recorders, or even deployable recorders. The new European Aviation Safety Agency cockpit voice recording mandate, with effect from 2021, requires a 25-hour voice recording capability. All this should help make flying safer and event construction better.

In an air accident investigation, what are the obligations to be followed?

So, said Mr. Learmount, Iran is responsible for the investigation, and can exercise control over it. It could contract out specialist tasks, such as downloading the black boxes, to an expert third country such as France — France’s BEA is to take part in the investigation. Normally, the accident investigator of the country that originally certificated the aircraft type (the U.S.) and the manufacturer (Boeing) would be invited to take part.

Pointing out that the aircraft was most likely to have been hit by a missile, Mr. Learmount said, “Mistakes happen.” For example, in 2001, a Siberia Airlines jet, flight 1812, from Tel Aviv to Novosibirsk was shot down by the Ukrainian military carrying out firing practice against target drones.

After Iran formally invited the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and Boeing to be a part of the investigation team, a senior NTSB official, in another email, said a number of challenges would need to be addressed to allow the NTSB to execute its role effectively. These include “long-standing country embargoes that preclude, among other things, exchange of data and travel, hence its close coordination with the State Department and other U.S. Government agencies”.

In India, the air accident investigation is governed by the Aircraft (Investigation of Accidents and Incidents) Rules, 2012. The Central government is under an obligation (and has the power) to investigate any accident that happens within the territory of India, and in cases of aircraft registered in India even if the accident occurs outside India. The DGCA can only investigate into incidents, and in cases of serious events, the Central government (through the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau) has to step in.

Does ICAO have any authority over a country’s investigation board?

ICAO, said Mr. Sarin, is not directly involved in any aircraft accident investigation. It simply lays down the recommended practices, which states are expected to adhere to. Also, ICAO conducts annual audits of states and publishes its report. Thus, if a state has not adhered to ICAO’s recommended practices it gets bad publicity.

States (where the accident has occurred) have a right to disallow any state from taking part in an ongoing investigation. Thus, the state (where the accident has occurred) can conduct the investigation (including decoding of the black box) independently and this would not render the investigation invalid, provided ICAO’s recommendations are followed. It must be noted that only a few countries, mainly the U.S., the United Kingdom and France possess the proper technology to decode black boxes.

ICAO also releases various updates concerning the safety aspect of aviation, which includes updates on black box technology. Annex 13 requires that the state, which is leading the investigation, should use the black box for the purpose of investigation, according to Mr. Sarin. If it lacks the technological infrastructure required, it should take the assistance of states that are equipped to deal with it.