Air Accident Investigations (Committee) (Hansard, 29 July 1959)

§ Mr. Watkinson

I propose that the terms of reference of the Committee should be—To inquire into the regulations and practice—

(a) governing investigations of accidents occurring in the United Kingdom to civil aircraft and elsewhere to civil aircraft registered in the United Kingdom; and
(b) governing the conditions under which licences granted by the Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation to persons to act as members of the flight crew of an aircraft or as aircraft maintenance engineers or radio maintenance engineers, or any privilege conferred by such a licence, may be cancelled, suspended or varied and the conditions under which a person who is medically and technically qualified to hold or exercise such a licence or privilege may be refused a grant or renewal thereof

and to make recommendations.

I am glad to announce that Sir David Scott-Cairns, Q.C., has accepted my invitation to be Chairman of this Committee.

Pending a full examination by an independent committee I intend to clarify the rights of persons under the present regulations and procedures. I will with permission arrange for these clarifications to be circulated with the OFFICIAL REPORT.

The following are the clarifications—

CLARIFICATION OF THE RIGHTS OF BLAMEWORTHY PERSONS ETC. UNDER THE CIVIL AVIATION (INVESTIGATION OF ACCIDENTS) REGULATIONS, 1951

1. In order to make it quite clear to interested parties, a number of changes have been made in present practices for implementing the above regulations.
2. In the first place when the Minister, on the Inspector of Accidents' preliminary report, decides there shall be an Inspector's investigation, i.e. no Public Inquiry, this decision will be made public in terms setting out precisely that the Minister does not propose to hold a Public Inquiry, and interested parties will be informed direct and in writing.
3. The standard letter sent by the Inspector of Accidents advising a person or the personal representative of a person that that person may be held blameworthy, has been revised inter alia to include a clear statement of—

(a) procedure whereby the recipient may exercise his rights of representation, etc., and
(b) a clear explanation of the purpose of the accompanying form of reply.

4. The revised standard letter will be in the following terms:

Dear As you may be aware, the Chief Inspector of Accidents has been conducting an investigation into the accident which took place on at to aircraft of which you were the pilot. This investigation is nearing completion and before a Report is submitted to the Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation it is necessary for the Chief Inspector to comply with the terms of Regulation 7 (5) of the Civil Aviation (Investigation of Accidents) Regulations. 1951, S.I. No. 1653 of 1951. 2. The relevant paragraph of the Regulations reads as follows: Where it appears to the Inspector that any degree of responsibility for the accident may be attributed to any person, and if it appears to the Inspector to be practicable so to do, that person or, if he be deceased, his legal personal representatives shall be given notice that blame may be attributed to him and be permitted to make a statement or give evidence and to produce witnesses and to examine any witnesses from whose evidence it appears that he may be blameworthy. 3. The Chief Inspector, therefore, has the duty to inform you that some degree of responsibility for the accident may be attributed to you since it appears likely that … 4. If you wish to exercise your rights under this Regulation an appointment can be made for you on request. At this interview you can ask the Inspector to explain why he has formed the opinion mentioned in paragraph 3 above, and the Inspector will also answer any queries you may have about your rights under the Regulation and the procedures for exercising them. If you want to you can wait until you have had time to consider this fuller information before making any representations, but if you prefer you can, either in writing beforehand or at this interview, or subsequent interviews, ask any questions and make any statements you wish. At all interviews you can, if you wish, bring legal or expert or other advisers and produce witnesses; and you also have the right to examine the witnesses from whose evidence it appears to the Inspector you may be blameworthy, so far as it is practicable to arrange this. To avoid misunderstanding, your representations must be made either in writing or in person and cannot be entertained over the telephone. 5. There is of course no obligation on you to exercise your rights of making representation under the Regulation if you do not wish to do so; but as the Chief Inspector of Accidents is required by the Regulations to state in his final Report the extent to which Regulation 7 (5) has been complied with, it would be helpful if you 70W could acknowledge this letter and in your reply say whether or not you wish to exercise your rights under the Regulations. 6. For your convenience, two copies of a form of acknowledgment and reply are enclosed, one of which you may find useful to use for your own reference, the other being intended for signature on completion and return to the Department. 5. Similarly the standard form of reply sent out with this letter has been redrafted to eliminate any unintentional impression that it is a device for extracting an implied admission of blameworthiness or renunciation of privilege, and to make it clear that it is simply a convenient way of acknowledging the Inspector's letter and of informing him of the writer's decision whether or not he wants to exercise his rights of representation. 6. The new standard form of reply will be as follows: Accident to aircraft on

1. I am replying to your letter of in which I was informed by the Chief Inspector of Accidents of the Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation that it is possible that some degree of responsibility for the above-mentioned accident may be attributed to me since, I understand, it is thought likely that [state here conclusions and opinion as to blameworthiness in words used in the Chief Inspector's letter].
2. I note from your letter that under Regulation 7 (5) of the Civil Aviation (Investigation of Accidents) Regulations, 1951, S.I. No. 1653 of 1951, that I may exercise certain rights of representation including the making of statements, giving of evidence, the production of witnesses and the examination of any witnesses from whose evidence it appears that I may be blameworthy.

^*(i) I wish to exercise the rights open to me under this Regulation and a convenient date for an appointment would be
†(ii) I do not desire to exercise the rights open to me under this Regulation.

^* Delete or complete as appropriate. † Delete if not appropriate. 7. These standard letters may be subject to appropriate alterations according to whether the person concerned is a pilot or a navigator, etc., or a representative of a deceased person. 8. If the person receiving a standard letter elects to exercise his rights under the Regulation he will be invited to an initial interview at which it will be explained to him why the Inspector has reached the provisional conclusion he has and at which he will again be told what his rights are and also that in his own interest representations must be made at interviews only and not over the telephone and that an official record will be kept of all interviews of which he may have copies to ensure that nothing is misunderstood. It will also be made clear that representations can of course be made to the Inspector at subsequent meetings on which the Inspector will 71W base his eventual statement to the Minister and that during these interviews the right of cross-examination is open to interested parties as well as the freedom to bring along friends, lawyers, etc., to help him. 9. After the procedure for hearing representations has been completed and the Inspector makes his final report, he will include in his report not only a statement that the Regulation has been complied with but also one summarising the manner and extent of compliance. The final report will also state whether, if at all, the Inspector's opinion was modified as a result of representations made.