In this installment of our Aviation Symposium series of blog posts, we present the materials from the panel “Behind the Crash: Working Effectively with the NTSB, FAA, Unions, Media, Families, Employees, Who Does What!”  The panel was packed with experts in navigating the investigation process from a wide variety of perspectives.  Panelists included senior FAA accident investigators, airline directors and vice presidents involved in emergency response, senior insurance brokers and senior aviation insurance claims managers. 

The panel discussed the NTSB investigation framework, including the “party system” employed by the NTSB.  The NTSB recognizes that it does not necessarily retain “in house” expertise on every aspect of aircraft design and construction, air carrier operations, or airspace management.  As a result, the NTSB invites outsiders with specialized knowledge to aid in the investigation.  Party participation, however, comes with conditions.  Primary among these is strict confidentiality. 

The panel provided practical tips for those involved in an NTSB investigation, such as the logging and indexing of materials provided to the NTSB, limiting the dissemination of information within your organization to those with a “need to know,” and how to protect proprietary information and trade secrets. 

The panel also discussed the fact that the FAA will often conduct a parallel investigation as part of its duty to oversee pilot and carrier operations.  While the NTSB is not interested in “finding fault,” the FAA is not so limited, and their investigations may result in stand-down orders or civil penalties. 

Finally, the panel explained how to deal with the ever-present media.  Any significant air accident can completely occupy the 24-hour news cycle for days or even weeks.  The panel discussed how to deal with the attention, the need to keep NTSB investigative materials confidential, how to deal with accident victims and their families, and how to develop a coherent messaging strategy so that “your side of the story” is not lost in sensational coverage. 

For those of you who would like additional information regarding this topic, the PowerPoint presentation for the panel can be found HERE.