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Civil Aviation Act 1990

Functions, powers, and duties of participants in the civil aviation system

26: Obligation to notify all accidents and incidents

You could also call this:

"You must tell the authorities if something goes wrong with a plane"

If you're flying a plane and it has an accident, you need to tell the Authority about it as soon as you can. This is your job as the pilot in charge.

If you work with planes in any way, like flying them, fixing them, or helping with aviation services, and you're involved in an incident, you might need to tell the Authority about it too. The rules will say when you need to do this.

Sometimes, if the pilot can't tell the Authority about an accident because they're hurt or have died, the person who runs the airline or owns the plane needs to do it instead.

If someone is in charge of a search and rescue for a plane, they need to let the Authority know about it as soon as they can.

When you tell the Authority about an accident or incident, they might ask you for more information. If they do, you need to give them the extra details right away. This could be the pilot, the airline, or anyone else involved who the Authority asks.

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This page was last updated on

View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM216164.

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26A: Obligation to identify pilot-in-command, or

"Telling who was flying the plane when rules were broken"

Part 2Functions, powers, and duties of participants in the civil aviation system

26Obligation to notify all accidents and incidents

  1. The pilot-in-command of any aircraft that is involved in an accident shall notify the accident to the Authority as soon as practicable.

  2. Every person who—

  3. operates, maintains, or services, or does any other act in respect of any aircraft, aeronautical product, or aviation related service; and
    1. is involved in an incident,—
        1. shall, where required to do so under rules made under this Act, notify the incident to the Authority.

      1. If, due to injuries or death, the pilot-in-command is unable to give the necessary notice under subsection (1), the operator shall provide the necessary notice.

      2. The co-ordinator of any search and rescue operation for any aircraft shall notify the Authority of the operation as soon as practicable.

      3. The Authority may on being notified under subsection (1) or subsection (1A) or subsection (2) or subsection (3) request such additional information, in such form as the Authority considers appropriate in each specific case, and the pilot-in-command or operator or person of whom the request is made shall provide the additional information forthwith.

      Notes
      • Section 26(1): substituted, on , by section 16(1) of the Civil Aviation Amendment Act 1992 (1992 No 75).
      • Section 26(1A): inserted, on , by section 16(1) of the Civil Aviation Amendment Act 1992 (1992 No 75).
      • Section 26(3): substituted, on , by section 16(2) of the Civil Aviation Amendment Act 1992 (1992 No 75).
      • Section 26(4): amended, on , by section 9 of the Civil Aviation Amendment Act 1996 (1996 No 91).
      • Section 26(4): amended, on , by section 16(3) of the Civil Aviation Amendment Act 1992 (1992 No 75).
      • Section 26(4): amended, on , by section 40(1) of the Civil Aviation Amendment Act 1992 (1992 No 75).