37% of global aircraft accident probes failed to meet international standards, says IATA

Commercial aviation is safer than at any point in modern history, but the aviation industry is now facing an unexpected challenge: too many aircraft accident investigations are failing to meet global standards.

According to the International Air Transport Association (IATA), only 63% of aircraft accident investigations conducted between 2019 and 2023 complied fully with the requirements laid out under Annex 13 of the Chicago Convention, the international framework governing aviation accident investigations.

That means roughly 37% of investigations were delayed, incomplete, unpublished or otherwise failed to meet internationally accepted reporting standards.

The warning comes as global aviation continues achieving record safety improvements. According to IATA data cited by Aerospace Global News, the commercial aviation accident rate improved from one accident per 268,703 flights in 2005 to roughly one accident per 760,000 flights in 2025.

While the declining accident rate reflects major advances in aviation safety, IATA says the rarity of serious crashes is ironically making investigations harder to sustain effectively.

Fewer accidents, greater pressure on investigations

Modern aviation increasingly operates in an environment where major accidents are exceptionally rare events.

That has changed the nature of accident investigation itself.

In previous decades, frequent incidents helped regulators and investigative bodies maintain deep operational expertise and continuous institutional experience. Today, many countries encounter serious aviation accidents so infrequently that maintaining specialised investigative capabilities has become more difficult.

According to IATA, several factors are contributing to weaker compliance with Annex 13 standards, including:

• Limited specialist investigative resources
• Declining hands-on experience due to fewer accidents
• Political sensitivities surrounding investigations
• Legal disputes and jurisdictional complications
• Restricted access to evidence or operational data
• Delays in publishing final reports

The organisation stressed that the issue is not necessarily unwillingness by governments or regulators, but a system struggling to adapt to an era of historically low accident frequency.

For an industry built heavily on data-sharing and collective learning, incomplete investigations create growing concern.

Why Annex 13 matters so much

Annex 13 of the Chicago Convention establishes globally accepted procedures for investigating aircraft accidents and incidents.

The framework outlines how investigations should be conducted, documented and shared among aviation stakeholders.

Its core purpose is not assigning blame, but identifying safety lessons that can prevent future accidents.

Over decades, findings from aircraft accident investigations have directly shaped many of aviation’s most important safety improvements, including:

• Pilot training procedures
• Cockpit communication standards
• Aircraft system design changes
• Maintenance protocols
• Emergency response practices
• Air traffic management systems

Industry experts note that many of today’s routine aviation safety standards emerged only after detailed analysis of past crashes and operational failures.

That makes timely and transparent investigations essential even in an era where aviation has become statistically safer.

Aviation now depends heavily on shared safety data

IATA also highlighted how modern aviation generates enormous volumes of operational data every day through aircraft systems, maintenance logs, flight operations and safety monitoring programmes.

Combined with high-quality accident investigations, that data can help regulators and airlines identify safety risks much earlier than before.

However, the process depends on investigations being completed properly and shared widely across the industry.

If reports remain delayed, unpublished or incomplete, critical safety lessons may fail to reach operators, regulators and manufacturers in time.

The organisation warned that aviation’s improving safety record should not create complacency around investigative standards.

IATA backs reforms to global investigation rules

To improve compliance rates, IATA is supporting proposed amendments to Annex 13 in coordination with international aviation bodies.

One of the key proposed reforms would explicitly allow states with limited investigative capability to delegate accident investigations to another country or a regional investigative authority.

The changes are aimed at helping smaller or less experienced states manage complex investigations more effectively.

The proposed reforms also focus on:

• Improving transparency during investigations
• Ensuring unrestricted access to evidence
• Accelerating publication timelines
• Enhancing coordination between agencies
• Improving communication with victims’ families and the public

According to Aerospace Global News, IATA has also collaborated with the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and the International Federation of Air Line Pilots’ Associations (IFALPA) to create simplified guidance explaining how Annex 13 investigations should progress step by step.

The objective is to reduce confusion among multiple stakeholders involved in aviation accident investigations and improve report completion rates.

Central safety database aims to improve trend analysis

Alongside regulatory reforms, IATA has also launched a centralised database compiling safety recommendations from aircraft accident reports globally.

Traditionally, safety findings have remained fragmented across multiple agencies and jurisdictions, making broader trend analysis more difficult.

The new database is intended to consolidate recommendations into a single system that allows regulators and airlines to identify recurring operational risks more efficiently.

Industry observers say such data centralisation could become increasingly important as aviation systems grow more complex and globally interconnected.

Rare accidents now carry greater industry impact

Aviation safety specialists note that each major accident now attracts intense global scrutiny precisely because accidents have become so uncommon.

That increases the importance of thorough investigations and timely reporting.

IATA acknowledged there is no single reason behind the decline in Annex 13 compliance rates and no immediate solution to fix the issue globally.

However, the organisation’s broader message is clear: aviation’s strong safety performance cannot become a reason to weaken investigative discipline.

If crashes are now rare, every investigation effectively carries greater weight for the industry’s future safety learning.

The lessons uncovered in a single accident report could ultimately influence global operating procedures, aircraft certification standards or pilot training systems for years to come.

For an industry built on continuous improvement, that makes every investigation matter more than ever.