New European Union Approach to Civil Aviation Accident Investigation and Prevention

Abstract

S INCE the early 20th century, safety has been a constant byword in aviation development [1]. Data published by the ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organization) show that the safety of aviation has substantially improved from 1945 onward [2]. In 2009, according to the International Association of Transport Airlines, the western-built hull-loss accident rate was one accident per 1.4 million flights. This means that if youwere to take a flight everyday, the odds are that you could go 3859 years without an accident. However, with air traffic steadily increasing, accidents do happen, despite the best efforts of regulators and industry. The investigation of accidents and the determination of the causes and contributing factors, aswell as producing recommendations for preventing similar situations in the future, are essential elements in the process of continuous safety improvement. For this reason among others, this transport mode retains a globally low accident rate [3–8]. To make flying safer, independent investigation into accidents is essential, as it is the surest way of identifying the causes of an accident and answering the fundamental questions of what really happened and what can be done to prevent similar incidents in the future [9–11].