Russia has prepared a list of questions for Ukraine, which is to be given to a commission investigating the crash of the Malaysian Boeing in Ukrainian airspace, said Alexander Neradko, the head of the Russian Federal Air Transport Agency (Rosaviatsiya).
“The Russian aviation authorities have formed a list of 28 questions
that we will pass to the inquiry commission. Answers to these questions
will help establish the exact cause of this air accident,” Neradko told
journalists on Friday.
According to Rosaviatsiya, it is necessary to study the (audio and
video) recordings of the conversations with air traffic control in the
area of the disaster. It is also necessary to request the recordings of
the radio exchange between the air traffic controller and adjacent air
traffic control stations, including on the aircraft’s entry into
Ukrainian airspace; and the data from radio and telephone conversations
between air traffic controllers and the Ukrainian “military sector” or
air defense forces.
It is also necessary to request the recordings of the conversations
between air traffic controllers and the crews of the SIA351 (Singapore)
and AIC113 (India) flights, data from ground radar stations (including
primary-radar data) about the airplane’s movements, starting from its
entry in the Ukrainian airspace.
It is also necessary to obtain information about the composition and
capabilities of the Ukrainian ground radars, including the Kupol (Dome)
radar station and so on, information of the Ukrainian Armed Forces about
control (if any) by the air-defense forces of the use of airspace in
that area, including conversations between air defense stations.
It is also necessary to describe the radar environment, including
full information about military aircraft flights in the armed-conflict
zone and the crash site. Information is also required about which
Ukrainian army units were providing radar support for aircraft around
the crash site area on July 17, and their location.
According to Rosaviatsiya, it also necessary to request Ukraine to
provide data about conversations between military aircraft pilots and
the military sector and among themselves in the armed-conflict zone and
around the crash site, monitoring data from the military aircraft which
were in that area.
Information is needed as to what instructions were received by the
bodies in charge of organizing air traffic in Ukraine from the Ukrainian
aviation administration in relation to the restricted use of airspace
near Donetsk and Luhansk, and the established procedure for interaction
with air crews and the Ukrainian air defense bodies. Data will also be
required from specialist units of the onboard systems storing the GPS
data about the flight trajectory.
It is necessary to request information whether GNSS (global
navigation satellite system) jamming devices were used on the day of the
crash. According to Rosaviatsiya, information about the crew’s
preparation for the flight is also necessary, including whether the crew
had received a NOTAM (a notice to airmen), information about the
aircraft, and the causes for possible changes in the flight plan.
Also necessary are a copy of the flight plan filed by Malaysia, the
statistics on the previous flights that followed the MH17 path,
information about planned rocket launches on the day of the accident,
including the locations of the relevant forces and systems, the daily
plan and objective-monitoring data regarding the Ukrainian military
aircraft flights on July 17. Information is also required about the
actual availability and use of surface-to-air guided missiles, all air
defense missile systems currently in service in the Ukrainian army.
Investigators should also request information about any missile by
the Ukrainian military, including for training purposes, of guided
missiles on July 10 – 17, and preparations carried out in the run-up to
such launches; data on the activation of radar centers during the period
around the time of the disaster.
Also, according to Rosaviatsiya, it is necessary to make a layout of
the aircraft design, an inspection on the subject of destructive agents,
a detailed inspection of the crash scene. Investigators will also need
to question the crews which flew over the same area on the disaster day,
about possible disruptions in the operation of the onboard and
ground-based navigation equipment, decipher the DFDR data (digital
flight data recorder), with a special focus on the operability of the
navigation equipment and trajectory parameters.
It is necessary to obtain all data on the disaster aircraft,
including the information about possible failures and malfunctions and
any missing items on the MEL (minimum equipment list). Investigators
will also need to question the crew of the SIA351 Copenhagen to
Singapore flight on the subject of their possible witnessing of the
Malaysian Boeing 777 disaster.
