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Swiss transport accident investigators overwhelmed by cases

Swiss transport accident investigator
Swiss transport accident investigator Keystone / Urs Flueeler

Swiss transport accident investigators have been told to reduce a backlog of cases, particularly in the aviation sector, because too many investigations are taking too long to complete.

The Swiss Federal Audit Office issued its recommendations to the Swiss Safety Investigation Service in a report published on Wednesday.

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Auditors noted that a large proportion of investigations are not completed on time.

However, cutting the backlog would not represent an additional safety risk. The SESE publishes interim reports if it finds facts that have an impact on safety.

Auditors point out that since 2019, the department has been working to reduce the number of outstanding cases. While this figure has been significantly reduced in the railroad and shipping sectors, the situation in the aviation sector has stabilised at a high level.

In the opinion of the Swiss Federal Audit Office, SESE must therefore take swift action.

According to the report, investigations sometimes take longer than the legal deadline due to their complexity and the fact that several investigations are conducted in parallel. SESE points out that measures have already been taken to reduce the backlog.

Translated from French by DeepL/mga

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