The AIC's Functions and Approach
The AIC was established in 2010 as independent agency of the Government under Section 218 of the Civil Aviation Act 2000 (As Amended) and is accountable to Parliament through the Minister for Civil Aviation.
In accordance with Part XIII of the Civil Aviation Act 2000 (As Amended), the AIC’s primary function is to improve aviation safety by investigating accidents and serious incidents, determining the factors that affect, or may affect, aviation safety, and communicating its findings to relevant stakeholders. The AIC conducts its investigations on a ‘no-blame’ basis. This means the AIC does not apportion blame or liability and does not seek to determine any liability of persons or organisations in transport matters.
Investigations that focus on future safety rather than blame increase stakeholder awareness of, and action on, safety issues and foster industry and public confidence in the transport system. Publishing reports which explain how and why accidents and serious incidents occurred increases safety awareness and knowledge and forms the basis for stakeholders to improve safety action.
Annex 13 to the Convention on International Civil Aviation, and the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) documents and circulars relevant to aircraft accident and serious incident investigation, set out the standards, procedures and guidelines against which the AIC benchmarks its work.
The PNG Accident Investigation Commission is an important member of the air transportation system with a vital mandate to investigate all aircraft accidents and serious incidents on behalf of the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, and to publish its findings including safety recommendations for appropriate safety actions to address safety deficiencies in the system. The ultimate goal of the AIC is to improve safety in the air transport mode.
These significant progress made needs to be strengthened and sustained in the coming years. My focus areas therefore to sustain these great achievement for the next 3 years are to:
Strengthen current relationships with all stakeholders and various development partners - both national and international.
Invest in the continuous development of relevant skills and knowledge of our staff, especially those of our Investigators.
Continue to build our investigators tools and technological resource that will in turn enhance our investigation response time and overall capability.
Develop and nurture a team of aviation professionals that continue to aspire for the highest standards of aviation safety, good governance and personal integrity.
Vision
"To be nationally and internationally recognized as an independent and professional accident and serious incident investigation organisation dedicated to improving aviation safety for the benefit of PNG and all travelling public."
Mission
"To improve aviation safety by conducting independent no-blame safety investigations to determine the causes and contributing factors of aviation accidents and serious incidents, and by disseminating the findings and recommendations to the public across the aviation community in compliance with the Civil Aviation Act 2000 (As Amended), and the Standards and Recommended Practices of Annex 13 to the Convention on International Civil Aviation."
THE SPIRIT OF AIC
The AIC’s Foundational Values
“In aviation Safety we keep the bat straight - No friends, No Enemies, Just Facts”
Safety First - Safety is fundamental. Without fear or favour, we commit to investigating and reporting all forms of safety deficiencies whether in Design, Rules & Regulations, Standard Recommended Practices, Policies & Procedures or Human Conduct.
Our Mandate - We commit to working with all stakeholders to improve and promote safety in aviation by encouraging the highest standard of safety in our line of work. Keep the Bat Straight - When safety is the subject matter, we will implement our mandate without fear of favour; we have no friends, no enemies – just facts.
Invest in Safety – Investing in safety is not a cost – it is rather an investment for the future. We commit to investing in developing our capability and capacity to improve safety.
“Committed and Passionate about what we do to promote aviation safety”
Committed – We are proud and passionate of the profession of aircraft accident investigation. We are devoted to the cause of the AIC to ensure highest standards of air transport safety is achieved
Professional Knowledge & Competence – We are a team of experts in our respective disciplines working as a team of professionals. We respect individual disciplines but expect maximum and timely contribution from all for the common cause of the AIC.
Continuous Learning – We are passionate and confident in our capabilities and abilities to do a great job every time. We will actively seek to enhance our knowledge and capabilities through receiving and giving feedback and engage in the continuous process of learning and growth.
Total Quality – We are committed to excellence in all aspects of our work, ensuring a total quality culture is promoted and fostered in the AIC. Mediocre conduct and outputs has no place in the AIC. Getting it right, and in accordance with set standards, and on the first attempt every time.
Professional Courtesy & Presentation – We are committed to carrying ourselves as professionals in personal presentation and pride with professional courtesy and respects.
“Personal and Professional Integrity are important in our line of work”
Honest and Transparent – We are honest and transparent in our actions and decisions. Being consistently honest, open and truthful is important for building good character in ourselves and developing the level of trust and confidence we need from our stakeholders.
Ethical and Merit-Based – We commit to virtues of high ethical standards and merit-based decisions which are vital for promoting good governance culture in the AIC. We are committed to ‘walking the talk’ as far as our values are concern, and we commit to doing this even when we are alone.
Courage & Character – We are a respectable unit committed to executing our mandate without fear or favour and in accordance with international best practice for aircraft accident investigation. The reports we publish including the safety recommendations are based on credible evidence resulting from our investigations.
“We are a responsible unit. We will conduct ourselves within the legal requirements”
Responsible – We are the sole agency responsible for conducting investigations into aircraft accidents on behalf of the State for the purposes of improving safety in the air transport system.
Reliable – We are a reliable Team of Professionals with a resilient ‘can do’ approach to situations. We strive to find the solutions required to address a situation and will do our utmost best to help achieve Team goals and add4ress challenges as a Team.
Relevant – We commit to making ourselves relevant as a professional Team of an Investigation Organisation applying ourselves with passion and commitment to the cause of the AIC.
Results – We focus on results, therefore work with the end in mind. A safe air transport system that ensures safe passage of travelling public is our end goal.
“We are a responsible unit. We will maintain a high degree of independence and objectivity when investigating and reporting on an accident”
Independence – Maintaining our independence is critical for the integrity of our investigation work and the integrity of the safety recommendations we provide as a result of our investigations. Independence in our line of work is critical for ensuring that our work is not subjected to undue influence that may compromise safety.
Impartial - We are impartial and fair in the execution of our mandate. We carry out our responsibilities for investigating aircraft accident without fear or favour and in the greater interest of aviation safety. This is important for achieving safety for all.
Critical and Objective Mindset – We encourage and apply a critical and objective mindset to our work. We are open to criticism as well as constructive feedback regarding our work and remain open to the review of our work when credible evidence or facts become available, without compromising on safety or our independence.
Trust – Trust is foundational. We accomplish our goals and sustain our progress through the trust, commitment and loyalty of our coworkers.
Confidentiality – We are in a privileged position where we have access to information of different magnitude and importance from within the organization and from external stakeholders. We are committed to protecting our reputation by handling each information with due care and diligence.
Respect - We respect our coworkers in regard to their individual strengths, talents and positions in the AIC and commit to according them the respect they deserve as members of the team. We all bring something to contribute to the sustainable success of the AIC and we respect that.
Synergy – Our strength as a Team depends on being dependable; trustworthy; reliable; respectful; resourceful; resilient; engaging; encouraging; supportive; truthful; helpful; open to correction; open to learning new things. It is the synergy of diverse talents, strengths and professional discipline that makes the AIC an ideal place to work,
Collaborate for Win-Win - We collaborate for win-win outcomes including holding each other to account for the sake of the team and for the good of the AIC. We celebrate successes together as a team and reflect on failures together as a team for the wider personal and organisational improvement.