From Library: Interview with Marcus Costa Chief, Accident Investigation, ICAO

During the last MENASASI Seminar in Dubai, Abdelati Al Fadil, Senior Air Accident Investigator, took the opportunity to interview Marcus Costa, Chief Accident Investigation, ICAO. Abdelati enquired about Marcus’ early career and his views on current and future air safety investigation topics.

The most senior investigator provided interesting and thoughtful responses;

Q. Describe your career in aviation?

A. I started my aviation journey as a cadet with the Air Force Academy of Brazil in 1976, and graduated in the class of 1979.

In 1982, I got my flight instructor’s license and later on became a transport pilot. I initiated my safety career as a Flight Safety Officer in 1981, being involved with operational and maintenance related matters. In 1985, upon returning from the University of Southern California’s Flight Safety Officers Course in the U.S., I joined the Brazilian Safety Centre (CENIPA), where I was a senior faculty member for 19 years, and held numerous positions including Chief, Research and Analysis Division, and chaired the working group that developed the national Confidential Safety Reporting System.

I was also a member of the Aviation Safety Committee of the Airlines’ Union and a qualified civil aviation inspector. In 1994, I received my Master’s degree in Aviation Safety from Central Missouri State University in the U.S. In 2000, I was designated Deputy Chief of CENIPA, and Chairman of the National Committee for Accident Prevention. Subsequently, I was appointed Chief of CENIPA from 2002 to 2004. I then decided on an early retirement from the Brazilian Air Force and joined the Airport Authority of Brazil (INFRAERO) as a safety adviser.

In November 2004, I joined ICAO as Chief, Accident Investigation Section.

Q. Please give your views on Air Safety Investigations in the MID Region.

A. Different regions pose varying challenges for investigators. Hostile environments, such as jungle, the High Seas, and deserts require special training and adequate personal protective equipment for investigators to carry out their work.

I am aware of periodic training held by AAIS in order to keep its investigators current with demands imposed by adverse conditions in the desert, which other accident investigation authorities of the region would be encouraged to follow suit.

Some other Mid Region States are obtaining significant progress in achieving the functional independence of their investigation authorities. For me, all of this is a clear indication of the professionalism and commitment towards safety in the Mid Region.

Q. What is your opinion of the value of MENASASI?

A. I extend my congratulations to this initiative by the UAE. The establishment of the Middle-East and North Africa Society of Air Safety Investigators – MENASASI, has proven to be the right avenue to foster cooperation and exchange of lessons and best practices within the regional aviation community, which will result in enhanced efficiency of investigations.

Topics and discussions held at MENASASI 2015 were insightful and attuned with current safety priorities. I was particularly impressed with the transparency of the debates, together with the level of expertise of the presenters and attendees.

MENASASI 2015 was indeed a very successful event! Semi-annual publication on Air Accident Investigation from UAE General Civil Aviation Authority

Q. What do you think are the most important challenges facing air safety investigations today?

A. The speed of communications in the era of social media is perhaps the biggest challenge that investigation authorities are facing nowadays, bringing along a fearsome aspect to investigations, i.e. inconsistency of information.

The “social media era” has demanded that investigation progress reports are brought to the forefront and done expeditiously, literally on a daily basis. Investigators are trained to validate and corroborate any piece of information before making it public.

Validation is commonly done even with the so called factual information, which sometimes may prove not to be so factual.

One can easily appreciate the challenges faced by investigation authorities in providing validated information to the media on a daily basis, and often times more frequently, especially when a major investigation is underway.

I would emphatically recommend that those authorities put in place well-thought procedures to communicate with the media in the first few days following an accident. To this effect, all investigators are encouraged to consult the ICAO guidance on this subject.

Another major challenge for investigation authorities relates to the use of their reports for other than safety related purposes, which may have an adverse effect on safety and jeopardize the availability of associated information in the future.

States have long recognized such adverse impact on safety during ICAO meetings. As a consequence, much work has been done in the last few years resulting in the development of new provisions for the proper protection and use of accident and incident investigation records, to be incorporated into ICAO Annex 13 in 2016. And this was the theme of my presentation at the MENASASI 2015.

Q. If you could make one improvement in air safety investigations, what would it be?

A. This is certainly not an easy question, as such investigations are at the pinnacle of the industry’s safety initiatives when comprehensiveness and transparency are considered.

But I would offer one suggestion that would help safety investigations achieve optimal effectiveness and efficiency: accident investigation authorities need to be properly resourced with qualified investigators, adequately funded, and functionally independent from other aviation authorities and entities that could, to any degree, interfere with the goals and conduct of the investigations.

And allow me to recall that the only objective of an Annex 13-type investigation is the prevention of accidents and incidents, and not the apportioning of blame, or liability.

Q. Do you think that air safety investigation agencies are making enough progress in obtaining the knowledge and training necessary to build experience to investigate drone accidents?

A. Annex 13 was the first ICAO Annex to address Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems (RPAS), attesting to the proactivity of the investigation community that first discussed RPAS issues at the 2008 AIG Divisional Meeting. Undoubtedly, investigations involving RPAS will pose new challenges, and much discussion is underway by the ICAO Accident Investigation Panel in order to accommodate this new aspect into investigation procedures and techniques.

Guidance material for investigating RPAS has been developed by ISASI and will be considered for incorporation into ICAO’s manuals. It is acknowledged that most of the experience in investigations of RPAS is still limited to the military environment, and accident investigation authorities are encouraged to seek their cooperation through memoranda of understanding, and other similar arrangements.

Q. You have reached the highest position in air safety investigation. What would you like to achieve next?

A. I feel privileged to be occupying the chair of the Accident Investigation Section of ICAO, and to be able to facilitate the progress of global investigation provisions.

But make no mistake, the heaviest burden of the safety arena rests on the shoulders of the accident investigation authorities who are the ultimate custodians of safety, going into action when all safety defences and barriers have failed. They are truly the ones holding the most distinct position in the air safety investigation domain. It has been an honour to represent the accident investigation authorities in ICAO. As for the future,

I would like to see palpable progress in cooperation of investigations among States with limited resources. In this regard, I am a firm believer that the best way forward would be the establishment of Regional Accident and Incident Investigation Organizations (RAIO).

Some initiatives are in progress worldwide, with ICAO Regional Offices fostering RAIO discussions and developments when appropriate. Interested States are encouraged to refer to the ICAO Manual on Regional Accident and Incident Investigation Organization (Doc 9946) for further information and guidance.

Q. What do you like to do in your spare time? Do you have any pastimes?

A. I guess the passion for investigations led me to seek activities during my leisure time with similar challenges; it had to be a hobby requiring tenacity, perseverance and focus, just like a major investigation. Well, I found “golf” at a later stage of my life.

I started playing this amazing game some five years ago and have turned myself into an avid weekend golfer… and I soon realized that hitting a small white ball in the sweet spot is far more challenging than I ever imagined!