Key facts
- Mark Searle, IATA global director of safety, said a 50% final-report rate is not acceptable.
- Searle said the publication rate has shown no real forward trajectory.
- It is not clear when a final report will be published on the June 2025 Air India crash.
- A draft final report on the Air India crash, which killed 260 people, was expected around October.
- Hassan Shahidi of the Flight Safety Foundation said investigating bodies often lack workers with sufficient expertise.
- Saudi Arabia's government and National Transport Safety Center did not answer requests for comment.
Final reports are published for only about half of all aviation accidents investigated under international rules, Mark Searle, global director of safety at the International Air Transport Association, said on November 12 on the sidelines of the International Aviation Safety Summit in Montreal. "I don't think 50% is acceptable," Searle said, adding that the rate appears to be holding around that level with no real forward trajectory.
Under international rules known to the industry as Annex 13, investigations are launched to help experts gain knowledge and issue recommendations that can improve safety. Under standard international practice, final reports on air accidents are generally due within a year, Reuters reported.
It is not clear when a final report will be published on the June 2025 crash of an Air India Boeing 787 jetliner shortly after takeoff in Ahmedabad, India. A draft final report of the accident, which killed 260 people, was expected around October. Before a draft can be approved, it should be circulated to relevant participating countries for comments.
Reuters reported in October that Saudi Arabia had launched an air accident probe under international rules following the September 30 cockpit stabbing on an Israel-bound flydubai jet. It is not clear whether Saudi Arabia will produce a preliminary report, which is typically published around 30 days after an incident. The Saudi government and the country's National Transport Safety Center did not answer requests for comment.
China has also yet to publish a final report into the crash of a China Eastern flight in 2022. Hassan Shahidi, president and CEO of the Flight Safety Foundation, which organized the conference, said convincing all countries to produce timely reports has been a challenge. Shahidi said in an interview that the reasons given are usually that the investigating body lacks enough workers with sufficient expertise, and that some incidents are sensitive because they involve suspected intentional downings of planes.
Searle said producing the reports is key because it helps prevent similar accidents. "When these reports aren't coming out with solid recommendations the industry can't learn," he said.