Notification

Notification

After an accident or serious incident, fixed notification chains start running — internationally between States, within the EU towards the safety investigation authority, and in Germany towards the BFU. As a PPL pilot you must know whom you personally have to inform, how quickly, and how to behave at an accident site. The exam also tests the international notification addressees and the ICAO thresholds.

ICAO: international notification (Annex 13, Chapter 4)

When an accident or serious incident occurs, the State of Occurrence must forward a notification with the least possible delay to:

• the State of Registry of the aircraft,
• the State of the Operator,
• the State of Design,
• the State of Manufacture, and
• ICAO, when the aircraft involved has a maximum mass of over 2 250 kg or is a turbojet-powered aeroplane.

The notification carries the identifying code ACCID (accident) or INCID (serious incident) and contains:

• manufacturer, type, registration and serial number of the aircraft,
• name of the owner/operator and of the pilot-in-command,
• date and time (UTC), last point of departure and intended point of landing,
• position of the aircraft, number of persons on board, number of fatalities and serious injuries,
• nature of the occurrence and extent of damage,
• availability of physical evidence.

ICAO: who investigates (Annex 13 §5.1)

The State of Occurrence institutes the investigation and is responsible for its conduct. It may delegate the whole or any part of the investigation to another State by mutual agreement.

The pilot-in-command or operator must report the occurrence to the competent authority of the State where it happened — normally the national safety investigation authority, often first via the nearest ATS unit.

EU: Regulation (EU) 996/2010

Obligation to notify (Art. 9) — Any person involved who has knowledge of the occurrence of an accident or serious incident must notify the competent safety investigation authority of the State of Occurrence without delay. The investigation authority in turn informs the European Commission, EASA and the States concerned.

Obligation to investigate (Art. 5) — Every accident or serious incident involving an aircraft other than certain light aircraft (those listed in Annex I to Regulation (EU) 2018/1139, e.g. microlights and historic aircraft) shall be the subject of a safety investigation. For the excepted light aircraft, the authority may investigate where it expects to draw safety lessons. Note: a typical EASA-certified training aeroplane is covered by the mandatory investigation regardless of its weight.

Investigation report (Art. 16) — The safety investigation report shall be published as soon as possible and, if possible, within 12 months of the occurrence.

Germany: §5 FlUUG and the BFU

§5 FlUUG requires the pilot-in-command, owner, operator and all other involved persons to report any accident or serious incident without delay to the Bundesstelle für Flugunfalluntersuchung (BFU).

Conduct at the accident site — immediate measures for the PIC/owner:

1. Rescue persons and render first aid — this always takes priority.
2. Notify the BFU and the police.
3. Do not alter the accident site, wreckage or evidence (except as necessary to rescue persons) until the BFU or police release the site.
4. Make records, flight documents and pilot licences available on request.

Exam essentials

• The State of Occurrence notifies the State of Registry, State of the Operator, State of Design, State of Manufacture — and ICAO for aircraft with a maximum mass over 2 250 kg or turbojet aeroplanes.
• The ICAO notification uses the codes ACCID (accident) and INCID (serious incident).
• The State of Occurrence institutes the investigation and may delegate it wholly or partly to another State (Annex 13 §5.1).
• Under Reg (EU) 996/2010 Art. 9, every person involved must notify the safety investigation authority without delay.
• Under Reg (EU) 996/2010 Art. 5, every accident or serious incident must be investigated, except that for the light aircraft listed in Annex I of Reg (EU) 2018/1139 the authority may (but need not) investigate.
• The investigation report should be published if possible within 12 months (Art. 16).
• In Germany, accidents and serious incidents must be reported without delay to the BFU (§5 FlUUG); the accident site must not be altered except to rescue persons.