Episode 1 – Who Investigates When It Crashes?
- Published on: 2025-04-07
- Featuring: Thomas Friesacher, Maximilian Kunz
- Duration: approx. 34 minutes
✈️ What is this episode about?
In Episode 1 of Mayday Files, Thomas and Max clarify one of the central questions of any aviation crisis: Who actually investigates when an accident occurs?
The episode lays the technical foundation for the entire series and explains how aviation accident investigation truly works – beyond TV images, headlines, and premature blame.
The focus is on the roles, responsibilities, and principles of safety investigation: Who goes to the accident site, who secures evidence, who evaluates data, and why it’s not about blame, but about the why behind an event. Thomas provides the operational investigator’s perspective, while Max translates for those who don’t live aviation professionally every day.
The episode shows how a reliable situational picture gradually emerges from wreckage, data, interviews, and system understanding – and why professional accident investigation ultimately serves one primary goal: to prevent future accidents.
🔊 Listen now
🕒 Chapter markers
00:00 – Cold Open & Introduction
Why aviation accidents fascinate us so much – and why real investigation is completely different from media speculation.
02:00 – The Episode’s Core Question
Who actually investigates after a crash or serious incident?
05:00 – Difference Between Police, Judiciary, and Aviation Accident Investigation
Why safety investigation is not the same as criminal prosecution.
09:00 – The Role of the Investigation Authority
How an investigation team works, what its tasks are, and what takes priority at the beginning.
14:00 – What Really Happens at the Accident Site
From initial assessment to securing evidence and collecting data.
19:00 – Data, Cockpit, Human Factors
Why an investigation is never just about technology, but always includes people, decisions, and organization.
24:00 – Why It’s Not About Blame
The Annex 13 logic: Understanding instead of condemning.
28:00 – Why This Work Is Relevant to All of Us
How investigation results lead to concrete safety improvements.
30:30 – Outro & Outlook
What awaits you in the next episodes of Mayday Files.
🧭 Contents & Highlights
Who actually plays what role in an aviation accident.
Why safety investigation and criminal investigations follow two different logics.
How an investigation team approaches an event.
The significance of the accident site, data, and interviews.
Why human factors and organizational culture are central.
Why the goal is always prevention and not assigning blame.
Why professional investigative work is a core component of modern aviation safety.
🗂️ Bonus content (for supporters) 🔒
- Deep-dive dossier (PDF): from field to lab phase to reporting
- Go-Team-Toolkit (checklists & priority matrix)
- Black-Box-Pipeline (Recovery → Download → Validation)
- Interview guide Human Factors (HF/CRM)
- Case timelines & maps for the short cases
- Downloadables (DAW template, recording checklist, chapter markers)
🗣️ That's what the crew says
"Aviation accident investigation does not begin with blame, but with the question of causes."
- Thomas Friesacher
"We want to make it understandable what really happens behind the scenes of an investigation."
- Maximilian Kunz
📌 Shownotes & Contact
- Shownotes & Literature: www.maydayfiles.com (Production: AeroXpert Visuals)
- Backstage clips: YouTube – Maydayfiles
- Questions/Suggestions: redaktion@maydayfiles.com
