Air Accidents Investigation Branch

Sign leading to the entrance of Farnborough House, the AAIB head office

The Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) investigates air accidents in the United Kingdom. It is a branch of the Department for Transport and is based on the grounds of Farnborough Airport near Aldershot, Hampshire.

History

The AAIB was established in 1915 as the Accidents Investigation Branch (AIB) of the Royal Flying Corps (RFC). Captain G B Cockburn^[1] was appointed "Inspector of Accidents" for the RFC, reporting directly to the Director General of Military Aeronautics in the War Office.^[2][3]

After the end of World War I, the Department of Civil Aviation was set up in the Air Ministry and the AIB became part of that Department with a remit to investigate both civil and military aviation accidents.^[4]

Following the Second World War a Ministry of Civil Aviation was established and in 1946 the AIB was transferred to it, but continued to assist the Royal Air Force with accident investigations - a situation which has continued ever since.

After working under various parent ministries,^{[citation needed]} including the Department of Trade,^[5] the AIB moved to the then Department of Transport in 1983 and in November 1987 its name was changed to the Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB). Latterly, the AAIB has become part of the reorganised Department for Transport (DfT) since 2002.^{[citation needed]}

Organisation

The AAIB has 53 employees.^{[citation needed]}

These are:

• Chief Inspector of Air Accidents
• Deputy Chief Inspector of Air Accidents
• 5 teams of Inspectors from all disciplines led by a Principal Inspector

AAIB Inspectors fall into one of three categories:

• Operations Inspector - must hold a current Airline Transport Pilots Licence with a valid Class I medical certificate. Able to offer appropriate command experience on fixed-wing aircraft or helicopters. Broad-based knowledge of aviation.
• Engineering Inspector - must hold an Engineering degree and/or be a Chartered Engineer with a minimum of 5 years' post qualifications experience. Knowledge and experience of modern aircraft control systems.
• Flight Recorder Inspector - degree level in electronics/electrical engineering or an aeronautical engineering related subject and/or is a chartered member of a relevant engineering institute with 8 years' experience since qualifying. Knowledge and experience of modern avionics.

There is also a Head of Administration who is supported by two teams, the Inspector Support Unit (ISU) who provide administrative support to the Principal Inspectors and their teams and the Information Unit (IU), who are the first port of call for accidents being reported.

AAIB administrative staff are part of the Department for Transport (DfT) and are recruited according to civil service guidelines.

Investigations

The AAIB conducts investigations defined under one of two categories; "Accident" or "Serious Incident". An "Accident" occurs where a person suffers a fatal or serious injury, the aircraft sustains damage or structural failure which adversely affects its performance, or where the aircraft is missing or inaccessible. A "Serious Incident" means an incident where an accident nearly occurred.

A partial list of accidents and incidents investigated by the AAIB:

• The crash of the R101 airship
• Star Tiger
• Star Ariel
• Munich air disaster, an Airspeed Ambassador crashed attempting take-off during a blizzard.
• BOAC Flight 781, the de Havilland Comet that crashed off of Elba and led to the discovery of the Comet's metal fatigue problems.
• South African Airways Flight 201, a second Comet brought down by metal fatigue.
• Staines air disaster, a Hawker Siddeley Trident stalled and crashed shortly after takeoff.
• Sikorsky S-61 disaster, a Sikorsky S-61 helicopter crashed into the sea off the Isles of Scilly, sparking a review of helicopter safety.
• Manchester air disaster, a Boeing 737 caught fire on the ground after an engine failure.
• Pan Am Flight 103, a Boeing 747, crashed near Lockerbie, Scotland after a terrorist bomb exploded on board. All 259 people on board, plus several on the ground, were killed. The incident became known as the Lockerbie air disaster.
• Kegworth air disaster, a Boeing 737 crashed on the embankment of Britain's M1 motorway after an engine failure.
• British Airways Flight 5390, a BAC One-Eleven, suffered explosive decompression when one of the front windscreen panes blew out, blowing the pilot partially out of the cockpit. The co-pilot managed to land the aircraft safely at Southampton Airport.
• British Airways Flight 38, a Boeing 777, which crash-landed short of runway 27L at London Heathrow Airport.
• Ross Air VP-BGE, a Cessna Citation aircraft that crashed in Farnborough, London shortly after take-off from Biggin Hill Airport.
• Porthcawl Mid-Air Collision, two Grob Tutors collided over the town of Porthcawl in South Wales (it is a three way investigation).

Headquarters

The Air Accidents Investigation Branch has its head office in the Farnborough House,^[6] a building that is a part of a compound within the boundary of Farnborough Airport,^[7] located near Aldershot, Rushmoor, Hampshire,^[6][8] near Farnborough.^[9] The approximately 1.75-hectare (4.3-acre) head office site, which houses three large buildings and car park facilities,^[10] is in a lightly wooded area south of the main runway of Farnborough Airport.^[11] The buildings at the AAIB site include an L-shaped, two storey flat roof office building and a hangar.^[7]

The AAIB site is south of the airfield and east of the Puckeridge Ammunition Depot,^[10] and it is located near the Basingstoke Canal.^[12] Cove Brook, about 155 metres (509 ft) south of the AAIB head office, runs from the northwest to the southeast. The AAIB head office is accessible from Berkshire Copse Road, which dissects through the length of the AAIB head office site.^[10] The Borough of Rushmoor stated that the AAIB complex "requires a secluded" and "secure" location due to "the nature of its operation."^[13]

Previously the AAIB head office was in the Shell Mex House along Strand in City of Westminster, London.^[14]

See also

	United Kingdom portal
	Aviation portal
	Disasters portal

• Air safety
• List of accidents and incidents involving military aircraft
• List of accidents and incidents involving general aviation
• Marine Accident Investigation Branch

References

External links

• AAIB website

v t e Department for Transport of the United Kingdom 55 Victoria Street · Great Minster House · Southside Ministers Secretary of State for Transport · Minister of State for Transport · 2 Parliamentary Under-Secretaries of State Executive agencies Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency · Driving Standards Agency · Government Car and Despatch Agency · Highways Agency · Maritime and Coastguard Agency · Vehicle and Operator Services Agency · Vehicle Certification Agency Non-departmental public bodies British Transport Police Authority · Northern Lighthouse Board · Passenger Focus · Trinity House Lighthouse Service Other Air Accidents Investigation Branch · Marine Accident Investigation Branch · Rail Accident Investigation Branch Category

v t e Aviation accident and incident investigation agencies   Africa CCAA ANACM MCA KCAA LYCAA BEA AIB BEA ANACS CAA   Asia IAC IAC CAAC CAD DGCA NTSC CAO JTSB IAC ARAIB LCAA AAIB CAAN CAA CAAP IAC GACA AAIB ASC IAC AAIC DGAC IAC GCAA IAC   Europe IAC IAC BAV IAC AAIU AAII AIB AIB BEA IAC BFU AAIASB TSB AAIB AAIU ANSV IAC IAC TAIIB IAC DSB AIBN SCAAI (civil) KBWLLP (state/military) GPIAA IAC CAD CIAIAC SHK AAIB DGAC IAC AAIB   North America BCAD TSB DGAC IACC CIAA AAC BEA DGAC JCAA BEA DGAC INAC AAC TTCAA NTSB   Oceania ATSB CAAFI TAIC   South America JIAAC DGAC CENIPA DGAC UAEAC DGAC BEA GCAA CIAA OIPAIA DGPIAA