The Council President and Secretary General of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), Dr. Olumuyiwa Benard Aliu and Dr. Fang Liu, expressed the UN agency’s deepest condolences today for the families and friends of the victims of EgyptAir MS804, a scheduled commercial flight from Paris to Cairo which crashed due to unknown causes on Thursday morning.

The flight was carrying 56 passengers and 10 crew and its wreckage has now been located near Karpathos island, south east of the Greek mainland.

"Any accident or incident resulting in loss of life is always a matter of utmost concern to ICAO and to the entire air transport community," President Aliu remarked. “ICAO will await the Annex 13 accident investigation Preliminary and Final Reports to learn more about the causes and contributing factors of this event, and ultimately we will work with the global civil aviation community on any associated risk mitigation recommendations appropriate to our role.”

“ICAO stands ready to lend assistance to the aircraft accident investigation, should the State or States with due authority under Annex 13 request us to do so,” noted ICAO Secretary General Dr. Fang Liu, who also stressed that the organization does not normally participate in investigations conducted by its Member States. “In those exceptional circumstances, we would normally be requested to serve as an official observer and/or to clarify the technical requirements which must be adhered to.”

The below Fact Sheet explains how accident investigation participating States are determined, as well as the process leading to the issuance of an accident investigation Preliminary Report (within 30 days of the event) and Final Report (asap or within 12 months of the event). Final Reports ultimately provide as much official information as possible on an accident’s contributing causes and factors, as well as any recommendations on how the safety framework should be amended in the future.