ADVOKS GLOBAL · KENYA
Civil Aviation Act
54. Accident Investigation procedure
Edition: 2024-04-26 · In force
54. Accident Investigation procedure
(1)Where the whole or any part of the investigation is carried out in Kenya, the chief investigator, the investigator-in-charge shall have—(a)free and unhindered access to the site of the accident or incident as well as to the aircraft, its contents or its wreckage;(b)powers to secure and preserve the scene of the accident; and(c)free access to any relevant information or records held by the owner, the operator, the operator's maintenance contractors and sub-contractors, the hirer, the designer or the manufacturer of the aircraft and by the authorities for civil aviation or airport operation or Air Traffic Service.(2)The Cabinet Secretary shall establish an incident reporting system to facilitate collection of information on actual and potential safety deficiencies.(3)Upon completion of the accident investigation, the investigator-in-charge shall submit a final report of the findings to the Cabinet Secretary for publication in the Gazette.(3A)No part of the final report referred to under subsection (3) shall be admissible as evidence in a court of law or used in any suit or action for damages arising out of any matter mentioned in such reports.(4)The investigator-in-charge may, at any stage of an investigation—(a)recommend to the appropriate authorities, including those in other Contracting States, any preventive action that he or she considers necessary to be taken promptly to enhance aviation safety; and(b)communicate to the relevant person or authorities in Kenya, the recommendations referred above or those received from another Contracting State.(5)Any person or authority in Kenya to whom a recommendation has been communicated under subsection (4), shall take that recommendation into consideration and, where appropriate, act upon it or provide a full explanation as to why no measures shall be taken to implement the recommendation.(6)Information gathered in the course of an accident investigation and through the incident reporting system shall not be put to inappropriate use.(7)Where the chief investigator has reasons to believe that a person is capable of supplying information, producing a document or giving evidence that may assist in the performance of an investigation, the chief investigator may by summons signed by himself or herself or the investigator-in-charge and served on that person, require the person—(a)to furnish the information in writing signed by the person served, and in the case of a body corporate, signed by a competent officer of the body corporate;(b)to produce documents; and(8)A summon made under subsection (7) shall specify the required time and manner of compliance.(9)A person shall not be excused from complying with summons under this section on the grounds that compliance may incriminate the person or make the person liable to a penalty:Provided that such information, documents or evidence shall not be admissible against that person other than proceedings under this Act.(10)A person who, without lawful excuse, refuses or fails to comply with a summon under this section commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a fine of not less than fifty thousand shillings or to imprisonment for a term not less than six months or to both.(11)Where the chief investigator has reason to believe that a person is in possession or control of any information or document which may assist in the performance of an investigation and that person has refused or failed to supply such information or document, the chief investigator may apply to the Tribunal for issuance of a warrant authorising a police officer to enter into any premises believed to contain or into which a document is kept or hidden and conduct search and make copies or take extracts of documents therein.(12)Any person, who knowingly gives false or misleading information or evidence in purported compliance with a summons under this section, commits an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding fifty thousand shillings or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months.