Clare Daly
Question:556. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport when the air accident report into Rescue 116 is due to be published; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47855/18]
View answerTuesday, 20 November 2018
Questions (556)
Written answers
The tragic accident involving Rescue 116 occurred in the early hours of 14 March 2017, at Blackrock, Co. Mayo. I would again avail of the opportunity to offer my condolences to the families, colleagues and friends of the four crew members who lost their lives: Capt. Dara Fitzpatrick, Capt. Mark Duffy, Winch Operator Paul Ormsby and Winchman Ciarán Smith. I am also acutely aware that Paul and Ciarán remain lost at sea.
The Air Accident Investigation Unit (AAIU) commenced an Investigation immediately upon notification of the accident, and that Investigation is ongoing. The AAIU is the national Safety Investigation Authority for aviation accidents and incidents and while it is located within my Department, it functions independently of me and my Department. Regulations provide for investigations to be held in private and are confidential. The sole purpose of such Investigations is the prevention of future accidents and incidents and not to apportion blame or liability.
The Investigation has published two reports to date; a Preliminary Report AAIU Report No. 2017-006 published on 13 April 2017, and an Interim Report AAIU Report No. 2018-004 published on 16 April 2018. Both reports are publicly available on the AAIU website, www.AAIU.ie.
The AAIU’s investigation into the causes of the accident to R116 is ongoing. It is charged under domestic Law, EU Regulation and International Convention with examining all relevant issues it determines are pertinent to the occurrence it is investigating. As I have already stated publicly, whilst I understand the on-going public interest in this matter, it is vital that the AAIU is given the time and space to complete its work and report on its findings. As the AAIU is independent in the conduct of its investigations, I do not propose to become involved in individual investigations. As such, I am not in a position to directly comment further on the issues surrounding it.
However, on information provided by the Chief Inspector of Air Accidents, I can tell the house that work is progressing towards the finalisation of a Draft Report. Once prepared, the Draft Report will be circulated in confidence to interested parties for comment, a process that will take at least 60 days. The Investigation will then proceed to finalise the Report, taking into account the comments received. Due to the complexity of the work involved, and as the number of comments, which may be received is unknown; it is not possible to be definitive regarding a timescale for these activities.