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Dutch Safety Boards final report on flight MH17 crash in Ukraine welcomed by UN

by IBNS 13 Oct 2015, 09:45 pm

New York, Oct 14 (IBNS): The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) on Tuesday welcomed the Dutch Safety Boards final report on Malaysia Airlines flight MH17, which crashed on 17 July 2014 in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine.

Known as an “accident investigation Final Report,” the document summarizes findings and provides recommendations on the technical investigation conducted under the international requirements established by the Convention on International Civil Aviation, also known as the Chicago Convention.

It concluded that the Boeing was “shot down over the eastern part of Ukraine, where an armed conflict broke out in April 2014,” killing all 298 people on board.

“ICAO and its Member States responded rapidly in the aftermath of MH17 to address some important immediate concerns,” said ICAO’s Council President, Dr. Olumuyiwa Benard Aliu, in a press release.

“Now that the Dutch Safety Board has issued its Final Report, ICAO will be reviewing its recommendations applicable to our Organization and responding as needed to ensure that air transport continues to be the safest way to travel,” he continued, noting that investigations under Annex 13 of the Chicago Convention are “directly related to improving flight safety, and not to the apportioning of liability or blame.”

The press release also highlighted that in the weeks immediately following the MH17 “tragedy,” ICAO quickly established a special Task Force on risks to civil aviation arising from conflict zones.