The American NGO Flight Safety Foundation has released a note in which it calls Brazilian aviation authorities a "shining example" on how to investigate aviation accidents and incidents.
At the same time they suggest that the police should not interfere in the work of the aviation experts. Brazil should resist any public pressure and should not rush to judge all those involved in the case, says the Foundation.
The note reminds that traditionally the Cenipa, Brazil’s Center for Investigation of Aeronautical Accidents has been able to conduct its job without outside interference and urges that once again the organ be allowed to act independently.
On Wednesday, October 4, the Brazilian Federal Police opened an inquiry to find out whether the pilot and the copilot of the Legacy jet that collided with Gol’s Boeing 737, killing 154 people, in the Brazil’s worst air accident ever, should be blamed for the tragedy.
Here’s the Flight Safety Foundation note:
The Flight Safety Foundation today encouraged Brazilian authorities so continue in their long-standing tradition of thorough aviation accident investigation with minimal interference from law enforcement in the case of the recent tragic accident involving a Gol Airlines aircraft.
"Brazil has always been a shining example of how to investigate an aviation accident or incident," commented Foundation president and CEO Bill Voss. "Traditionally, the Center for Investigation of Aeronautical Accidents (Cenipa) has conducted investigations with no interference from law enforcement.
"This allows an efficient investigation to proceed and answers to be found. In the case of clear negligence, appropriate civil and administrative remedies exist to deal with this tragedy after all the facts are in."
The Brazilian government is a member of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) Council and was part of the global consensus supporting the amendment Annex 13, to protect accident investigations from prosecutorial involvement until the investigation is concluded.
"We call on the Brazilian government to stay strong in the face of immense public pressure and continue to respect the integrity of the investigation and not rush to judge the various players in this accident," Voss continued. "We join all of Brazil in mourning this terrible loss, but strongly urge that the Cenipa be allowed to do its job without interference so that accidents like this can be avoided in the future."