Canada Urges Change In Air Accident Probes After Iran's Downing Of Jetliner

A government source said on Monday that Canada is expected to call on Safer Skies forum for improving international rules governing investigations for air accidents.

According to the source, Canadian Transport Minister Omar Alghabra is to tell the forum that reforms are especially needed in cases where the main country probing a crash, caused or participated in the downing of the aircraft.

Hosted virtually by Transport Canada and the Safer Skies Consultative Committee on Tuesday and Wednesday, the forum brings international representatives and the civil aviation industry, including the International Air Transport Association, to mitigate airspace risks over conflict zones.

Canada's Transportation Safety Board (TSB), an independent agency, called for such changes in 2021, arguing Iran's downing of flight PS752 showed the limitations of current rules.

The TSB argued that under those rules, Iran retained overall control of the investigation into the crash which killed all 176 onboard, while the country's military was implicated in the event leading to an "unprecedented" situation.

After three days of denial, Tehran claimed Revolutionary Guards “accidentally” shot down the Boeing 737 jet by two surface-to-air missiles in the tense aftermath of Iran's missile attack on United States military bases in Iraq on January 8, 2020.