‘Occurrence’ is the umbrella term for accidents, incidents, and immediate hazards to the safety of an aircraft operation.
As a rule of thumb, if the occurrence is something that you don’t want to happen again, it should be reported.
Notify us - and help improve safety
Report an occurrence(external link)
Report an aviation related concern(external link)
Briefly, an accident is an occurrence that causes significant damage, or injuries, while the aircraft is in operation.
The definition of an accident, according to Part 1 of the Civil Aviation Rules is: “an occurrence that is associated with the operation of an aircraft and takes place between the time any person boards the aircraft with the intention of flight and such time as all such persons have disembarked and the engine or any propellers or rotors come to rest, being an occurrence in which—
(1) a person is fatally or seriously injured as a result of—
(i) being in the aircraft; or
(ii) direct contact with any part of the aircraft, including any part that has become detached from the aircraft; or
(iii) direct exposure to jet blast—
except when the injuries are self-inflicted or inflicted by other persons, or when the injuries are to stowaways hiding outside the areas normally available to passengers and crew; or
(2) the aircraft sustains damage or structural failure that—
(i) adversely affects the structural strength, performance, or flight characteristics of the aircraft; and
(ii) would normally require major repair or replacement of the affected component—
except engine failure or damage that is limited to the engine, its cowlings, or accessories, or damage limited to propellers, wing tips, rotors, antennas, tyres, brakes, fairings, small dents, or puncture holes in the aircraft skin; or
(3) the aircraft is missing or is completely inaccessible.”
A serious incident is one in which an accident nearly happened. Some say it is an accident where you got lucky.
Some examples:
You must notify an accident or serious incident as soon as practicable using:
0508 ACCIDENT (0508 222 433)
A hazard to the safety of an aircraft could be something like a hole in the runway, a failure in taxiway lighting, or a breakdown in communication between air traffic control (ATC) and aircraft in the circuit.
Those types of hazards should be reported promptly, even if there was no incident.
According to the Civil Aviation Rules, Part 1, an incident is any occurrence, other than an accident, associated with the operation of an aircraft, that affects, or could affect, the safety of that operation.
Examples include:
You must notify an incident as soon as practicable:
Report an occurrence(external link)
Other incidents involve aerodromes, aircraft defects, security, dangerous goods, and facility malfunctions. These all represent threats to the integrity of a safe aviation system.
They could include:
Air cargo agents operating under Part 109 must report any cargo security incidents.
For further guidance on accidents, incidents and hazards, see:
Advisory Circular AC12-1 Mandatory occurrence notification and information
Notify us - and help improve safety
Report an occurrence(external link)
Unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) are also referred to as remotely piloted aircraft systems (RPAS), drones, and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV).
Essentially you report an occurrence involving a UAS in the SAME way you would report an incident with any other aircraft type.
If you’re unsure whether to report or not, we encourage you to err on the side of reporting.
Recreational UAS operators who come under Part 101, do NOT need to report occurrences, when ONLY their aircraft is involved. However, if you consider the occurrence significant to other aviation users (eg. a control system failure or battery fire), you can always report an aviation related concern(external link)
