[Peetwo]

Aussie O&O of the ICAO ADREP system: cont/-

To perhaps help provide a running form guide for the potential entrants to the BRB sponsored ICAO Obfuscation Cup, I will continue to publicly reveal my discoveries as I troll through the records of Australian (non-)conformity with occurrence reporting to the ICAO ADREP system.

Reference: BRB BT: The IR mole & the ADREP cock-up(rort)?

ACTION TAKEN BY THE ATSB:


The use of ECCAIRS was considered as an option for the occurrence database module of the ATSB's newly developed Safety Investigation Information Management System. Given that most of the aviation data collected by the ATSB is high-volume, low-detail data, the complexity of the ECCAIRS taxonomy was not considered appropriate. A bespoke taxonomy for safety events and safety factors was developed by the ATSB which better suits its needs, particularly for the purposes of safety research and for the application of its investigation safety analysis methodology. However, a mapping exercise was carried out to ensure that there was comparability between the ATSB and ECCAIRS taxonomies. For the purposes of notification, preliminary and final ADREP data reports, the ATSB continues to provide this information in the ECCAIRS format, including the use of the ECCAIRS taxonomies. 

Reference: 2004 ICAO ATSB - Audit Report [ Download PDF: 2.86MB]

Okay so from the above it can be seen, that even as far back as 2004, the ATSB had some serious deficiencies in forwarding safety issue information, occurrence notifications and preliminary/final reports to be inputted into the ICAO ADREP (iSTAR and ECCAIRS databases). So for other than the original occurrence notification, the ATSB solution (ref: Appendix 5-1) was not to try and match the ECCAIRS taxonomy but for everything (data/prelim/final reports) to be forwarded to the ICAO ADREP Secretariat in a copied PDF format.

On a read of the minutes of the 2008 ICAO IAG divisional meeting it was discovered that the taxonomy issue with the ECCAIRS IT application, was a common problem with some individual States. The IAG recommended a proactive action plan to tackle this. 

Based on the 2008 ICAO audit report on Australia (the audit occurred before the IAG meeting), it would appear that the issue had been effectively addressed by Australia.

The problem was also lessened for Australia by the introduction of notified differences to ICAO Annex 13. In particular the ATSB exempted itself from forwarding all preliminary reports for discontinued/not to be investigated occurrences.

There was also a ND for the requirement to investigate the accidents/serious incidents that would normally be required under Annex 13.

This was discovered in the course of the 2008 ICAO audit, with the finding leading to the issuing of an audit recommendation:

  
Remembering that the IR data input mole was in charge of the forwarding of data to ADREP from 2001 until sometime in 2012. This was when EH became the REPCON manager and presumably the ATSB ICAO coordinator.

I then fast forward to November 2015 with the discovery that EH had modified a PDF copy of the VH-NGA prelim report (created 15/01/2010). However tracking the changes to this document finds no changes. I could be wrong but IMO signifies that this document was on file at the ATSB and was simply forwarded by EH to ADREP on the 10/11/2015. 
 
This then got me thinking that maybe there were other similar aberrations...
This led me to reviewing all PDF copied prelim/final reports from 2009 till 2015. What I discovered was that nearly every report from occurrences between 2009 till 2011 was inputted by an ATSB Officer in the course of a week before and after EH modified the VH-NGA PDF copied prelim report.

I also discovered that there are still a significant number of serious incident/accident reports that have to this day not been submitted to ICAO and are not listed on either the ECCAIRS or ICAO iSTAR databases. One of these occurrences just so happens to be an occurrence that had the real potential to be Australia's worst aviation accident disaster - i.e. the Mildura Fog landing...

TICK..TOCK 6D, Malcolm in the middle & Barmybaby, TICK..TOCK indeed!

MTF? Definitely...P2