The Need for Forensic Archaeology in the Investigation of Aircraft Crash Sites

The scene of a mass fatality aircraft accident is forensically complex, involving multiple agencies, each with their own standards, protocols, and priorities. The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) provides Standards and Recommended Practices (SARPs) related to Aircraft Accident Inquiry, known as Annex 13. However, despite multiple revisions since 1951, a recent ICAO audit revealed a majority of ICAO Member States had not established autonomous accident investigation authorities or developed comprehensive and detailed training programmes for aircraft accident investigators. While there are numerous political and cultural contributors to this problem, one factor is ICAO’s lack of guidelines and standards for investigation training programmes, as well as for overall management of investigations, preservation of essential evidence and preparation of investigation reports. Another example is the International Criminal Police Organization’s (INTERPOL) standards and protocols for victim identification, with the guidelines lacking the pre-identification step of systematic field investigative procedures. Such inadequacies in aviation accident investigation can contribute to inadequate safety recommendations and their implementation. In contrast, forensic archaeology has evidence-based investigative protocols, which could be added to existing aviation procedures. In this chapter, we describe the need for standardized, best practice, and evidence-based approaches to aircraft accident investigations and which specific aspects of forensic archaeology would be most helpful.