News release

The Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) confirms the receipt of the flight recorder readout report of Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 (PS752) from the Islamic Republic of Iran’s Civil Aviation Organization.

“This is not the final safety investigation report but rather a brief summary of the contents that were retrieved from the cockpit voice and flight data recorders last month in Paris and is consistent with information that TSB investigators received while attending the download of the recorders in France. The investigation is far from over, as there are still many key questions that need to be answered,” says TSB Chair Kathy Fox.

The TSB will continue to advocate for a thorough, transparent and credible safety investigation that will answer three important questions:

1. What were the underlying human or organizational factors beneath each of the actions or decisions within the sequence of events that led to the missile(s) being fired that brought down this plane?
2. What was the basis for the decision to keep Iran’s airspace open to civilian aircraft, especially after the Islamic Republic of Iran had launched missiles towards a military base in Iraq?
3. How was the decision made by civilian airlines (including Ukraine International Airlines) to continue to operate in the area affected by this conflict, particularly after the Islamic Republic of Iran had launched missiles towards a military base in Iraq?

The TSB continues to offer its assistance to the Islamic Republic of Iran’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Board (AAIB).

About foreign safety investigations

International aviation accident and incident investigations are governed by Annex 13 of the Convention on International Civil Aviation. As the “State of Occurrence”, the Islamic Republic of Iran and, specifically, its Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB), is the lead investigative body for this safety investigation. The role of States with a special interest by virtue of fatalities, serious injuries or other direct interests, which includes Canada, is also prescribed.

As the lead investigation agency, the AAIB is also responsible for communicating information about the progress and results of the safety investigation. It should be noted that transcripts of cockpit voice recordings are privileged under Canadian legislation (Section 28 of the Canadian Transportation Accident Investigation and Safety Board Act) and in accordance with ICAO protocols, and are not normally released publicly.

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